Aidan peeled a banana as she watched Matt cook. "How long were you the candidate here?" Peter asked Otis as he grabbed the dirty cups from the dining table.

"Not long, four years." Otis shrugged, returning to his newspaper. By the look on Peters face, Aidan guessed that wasn't the answer he was hoping for.

Cruz grinned as he made his way into the room "I can't believe we're gonna miss the fight tonight."

Chief Boden raised an eyebrow "Well, that's just as well, 'cause I just found out he fought golden gloves."

"That was 20 years ago, chief." Cruz protested "We gotta tape it or something. We gotta see it." He exclaimed before stopping beside Aidan, picking up a cookie from the tray. He frowned taking notice of Matt behind the stove "What's the lieutenant doing?"

Hermann shrugged from Aidan's other side "He said he wanted to cook the Saturday corned beef." The three watched as Casey pulled a piping hot tray out and set in front of them, the smell wafting throughout the room "Ah, look at that."

Aidan sighed in delight "I love when Casey gets domestic."

"He made the best chicken parmigiana I ever put in my mouth." Mouch commented from the couch.

"What do you got there, Casey?" Cruz questioned, leaning over the counter to take a look.

"Don't you worry about it." Matt grinned "Call everyone to chow." He ordered.

Aidan moaned as she took a bite of her corn on the cob "Kill me right now and I'd die happy."

Everyone made noises of agreement as they tucked into their own plates before falling silent as they watched Kelly and the rest of squad 3 approach the kitchen.

"Have at it." Casey instructed replacing the empty tray with a new one, filled with fresh corned beef and roast vegetables. Aidan sighed, disappointed in Kelly as he took one look at the food before grabbing an orange and heading outside.

Matt had had enough as he went outside after Kelly. He found him, sitting on the steps of the squad truck, smoking a cigar "What the hell's going on? You okay? 'Cause if you're not, maybe you need to-"

"You think I need your help?" Kelly interrupted, looking up at him with a glare.

Matt sighed, holding his arms out in defeat "I'm trying here, Severide."

"Keep on." Kelly mocked, taking another puff of his cigar.

Matt frowned as he looked out into the distance "I cleaned out Darden's locker." He bit his lip before looking to Kelly "You should have vented the back." There. He had wanted to say that for four weeks.

Kelly spat at the ground before looking up at his friend "We're called the rescue squad, Casey. We don't vent, you shouldn't have put Andy through the window."

Kelly scoffed "I don't have to explain myself to you. I sleep like a baby." He raised an eyebrow at the blonde "You?"

"Say, Hermann." Otis started, glancing up from his hand of cards as he, Chris and Aidan played "You think maybe you just bought a little too much house?"

Chris frowned as he turned to the man "I was preyed upon by low-interest loan vultures."

"What time is the mayor coming?" Matt questioned, returning to the room.

Aidan shrugged, placing down an eight of diamonds "I heard 9:00."

"I heard he stops to take a piss at every house in the city," Otis commented "as a sign of respect."

Mouch nodded, not looking away from his newspaper "Stopped here in June."

Chris noticed the clock "Hey, Boden's about to fight in ten minutes."

Matt frowned, looking down at his watched before sighing "Screw it. Let's take a ride."

Aidan shared a look with Chris and Otis before shrugging "All right."

"Let's go." Cruz smirked, patting Peter on the back.

Aidan grinned as she climbed the ladder after Brian, Chris right behind her. The three wanted a better view of the fight, and up high they could see see through the sky light, right into the ring "Fighting in the red corner, for the Chicago fire department, chief Bo-Bo-Bo-Boden."

Once settled, Aidan and Chris shared an amused look as Otis whipped out his radio "Hello, sports fans. This is Brian Zvonecek, coming to you live from the annual battle of the badges. Firefighters versus the police. I hope you all are ready for this. Boden looks like a heat-seeking missile as he climbs in the ring to take on captain Olmstead from the CPD. Olmstead, of course, looks like the quivering cop slob that he is. Chief Biden first win back in 1992, when he was part of the esteemed truck 81-"

"The greatest damn truck in all of Chicago." Aidan grinned as she grabbed the radio.

Chris and Aidan laughed as Otis sent the girl a disgruntled look before taking back his radio "There goes the bell, and here we go. Takes two jabs to the nose." Aidan winced as she watched the fight unfold "Oh! He falls back into the ropes. One, two, three to the chin. Boden's in trouble already, folks."

Aidan bit her lip, watching the man whom without, she wouldn't be there struggle "Come on Chief."

"Wait." Otis sat up straight as they watched Boden rise "Here it comes. Three straight lefts-"

Aidan turned as the trucks radio came to life "Building fire. Ambulance 61, engine 51."

"That's just down the block." Vargas commented standing up.

Matt nodded before lifting the radio handheld to his mouth "81 responding."

"Copy that 81."

Matt turned to his squad "We're rolling, lets go."

As Truck 81 rolled up to the scene of the fire, Chris gawked out the window "Wow, this is bad, bad, bad."

"Lets go, lets go!" Matt called as the group poured out of the truck, assessing the scene in front of theme. Cars where on fire beside the building that was up in a flurry of flames "Otis, get to the elevator and tells is what we're looking at." Brian nodded, running to his post as Matt turned to Peter "Mills, help Cruz vent the roof." Matt turned to his friend and Chris "Hale, Herman, we'll go to the top floor and work our way down."

Aidan nodded "You got it Lieutenant."

Chris agreed and Matt started walking "Let's move."

Entering the building, the three made their way up the stairs just as a a pair of victims where trying to get out, coughing as the smoke engaged their lungs. While Matt escorted one, Aidan grabbed the other by the arm, shadowing him until he made it to the door where Vargas was waiting to escort him "You're nearly there, we got you."

Matt looked at Vargas as he passed the civilian over "Two coming out." Once Vargas had them in the clear, Matt and Aidan turned back and made there way to Chris "Let's go, Hermann. Second floor, clear the doors."

Aidan grimaced as the rats scurried down the stairs to escape the building. Once they had reached the second floor, Hermann approached the first door, knocking it open "Fire department! Anyone here?"

"Otis and Vargas heading up to five. Elevator obstruction." Otis' voice crackled rough the radio

Matt licked his lips as he grabbed his radio as he, Aidan and Chris continued to clear the second floor "Got it.

Aidan took the next door, knocking it wide open the with handle of her axe "Fire department! Anybody here? Call out!"

"Help!" Aidan heads snapped to the left at the young voice, making her way into the apartmentment she led the two men to the bedroom where the voice communities to plea for help "We're under here!"

Aidan ducked under the bed finding two you children, their faces covered in soot looking at her in fear "It's gonna be okay." She assured holding out her gloved hand "We'll get you out. It's okay, come on." Whilst Matt placed his mask over the boys face as he carried him, Aidan placed hers over the girls, scooping her into her arms "I got you sweetie."

The three firefighters made their way back down to the flirts floor before exiting the smoke filled building. They led the two children over to Mouch "Go to the nice, cuddly man." Aidan cooed as she passed the girl over.

Mouch smiled, taking a child on each hip "There we go."

Matt grabbed his radio "Truck 81, we need two more alarms. We're going back in."

"Lets go." Aidan nodded, re-entering the building with Matt and Chris.

"Roof is open!" Cruz informed them through the radio as the three made it to the fourth floor.

A blast of flames shot out as they tried to turn the comer. Chris pulled the pair back "Its too hot! We gotta go now."

Matt used his radio "Everybody out, out! Let 'me get hoses on it!"

Chief Boden pulled up to the scene, pulling his jacket in over his battle of the badges shirt "Rescue squad is two minutes out." He informed Mouch as the man approached him "Ambo too, what do you have?"

"Cruz and Mills are headed down from the roof." Mouch pointed to the ladder "Otis, Vargas, Casey, Hale and Herman are clear on floor four and headed down."

Boden assessed the building before shaking his head "No, no, no, they gotta go up. Smokes gone back." He grabbed his radio "Casey, up. Go up to the roof."

"Casey, do you copy?" Casey radio crackled as the three rounded the corner only to find Otis and Vargas trying to come down the stairs.

"Up, Up!" Casey told them "We can't go down. Move!"

In the blink of an eye, the flames rose higher and a beam broke off, falling between the two groups. Aidan let out a yelp as she, Chris and Matt fell through the floor, falling until they landed with a thud in the basement of he building.

"Casey! Hale! Hermann!" Otis yelled, looking down at his fallen friends. After no response and no mevemnt from the three who were unconscious, their alarms all went off in sync.

"Rescue squad on scene." Boden announced into the radio as Kelly and the rest of of Sqaud Three pulled up. The chief looked to Kelly as he approached, his team behind him "We have at least three not moving in the basement, Casey, Hale and Hermann."

Kelly felt his heart drop, feeling like he was losing Andy all over again "We'll get 'em."

Boden nodded, lifting his radio as he watched the lieutenant lead his squad in "Squad three, moving in."

Kelly led his men into the building, following the sound of the continuous alarms u til he spotted the gaping hole in the surface. "Up here! Up here!" Kelly looked up finding Otis waving at him, Vargas behind him.

Kelly waved his arm "Go up!" When the two men followed instruction, Kelly grabbed his radio "This is Sevride, I need a ladder on the west side window, fifth floor." He looked down the whole "I see Hale, Casey and Hermann." He turned to his team "Give me ropes, I'm going down. Come on, let's go, lets go." He lent back over the edge of the drop before being lowered down "Okay, down, down. Lower." His feet touched the ground "Okay, I'm down." He unclipped himself from the rope "Offline."

Aidan coughed, rolling onto her side as she groaned in pain. Kelly kneeled next to her as Matt woke up, coughing in her other side "You okay Hale?"

Aidan nodded groggily, accepting Kelly's hand as he pulled her up. He pat her back, relieved before pulling Casey up "Come on, get up. You don't wanna miss the mayors visit." He grinned between his two friends as they coughed "You guys are cooking down here."

Aidans eyes widened "Hermann!" Frantically she turned spotting him face down, she quickly made her way to his side, the two boys following her lead "Turn him!"

The three grunted as they turned the unconscious man over, only to find his mask had been damaged "His air!" Kelly exclaimed, taking off his mask and swapping them over allowing Chris to get a breath.

"Take a breath Hermann." Casey instructed, fastening the mask over his face.

Aidan rubbed his arm "Breathe Hermann."

Kelly grabbed his radio "Hey! Get me another line down here!"

After being thrown another rope, the three firefights worked together to get Chris strapped in so the rescue squad could pull him up. Kelly waved once Chris was secure "Get him up!"

As rescue squad three lifted Hermann and got his safely out of the building and into Shay and Gabbys ambulance, Matt, Kelly and Aidan had to find their own escape.

"Hey!" Matt shouted, grabbing his friends attention as they looked for a way out. He ran over to a table covered with stack shots of chairs. The three quickly pushed the chair aside before carrying the table under the hole.

As they stood in the table Kelly turned to Aidan "You first."

Aidan knew they didn't have time to argue, so when the boys out theirs hands together, she quickly stepped in before they trusted her upwards and she grabbed the edge, pulling herself up and over onto the first floor with a grunt of effort. Once Aidan was clear, Kelly bent down, placing his hand out for Matt. Casey was quick to be lifted, Aidan helping to pull him up and over.

When Kelly was the only one left standing, Aidan looked down at him "We got you Severide." Just as a Kelly grabbed onto Aidan and Matts hands, the table crumbled underneath him. The three grunted with the extra pressure trying to keep Kelly in the air.

Aidans breath got stuck in her throat as as she and Matt were pulled forward with the extra weight. Just as the second pull was about to send them over the edge, Mouch was quick to jump, landing on their legs "We got you!"

"Come on!" Aidan grunted out as Vargas and Otis joined in. With the team effort from truck 81 they were able to successfully pull Kelly up and over. As Kelly and Matt shared a meaningful look as the three lay exhausted on the floor, Aidan took deep breaths from her space between the, hoping to God an experience like this one would help them get over their arguement and let it all go.

As the group made their way to the ambulances for Matt, Kelly and Aidan to be checked over, the latter spotted Gabby and Shay working on a panting Hermann "Chris!" She rasped out, braking away from the group. She looked to Shay as she grabbed the mans hand "Is he okay?"

"Tension pneumothorax." the blonde announced just as the rest of the group surrounded them. Shay looked to a nervous Dawson "Don't think. Just do it."

Gabby nodded before taking the needle in her hand and thrusting it into Chris chest, relieving the pressure in his lungs "All right, stay with me Christopher." She looked to Shay "He's probably got other internal documents damage, help me get him inside."

Aidan coughed before sending Chris a reassuring smile as he was loaded into the back of the ambulance "You're going to be just fine old man, we'll see you at Lakeshore."

Matt wrapped an arm around Aidan as he led her back to the truck. "Thanks." Aidan gasped as she was handed a bottle of water. The pair of friends were quick to squirt water over their heads, sighing relief as they felt the cool liquid before taking a gulp each. Matt grinned as they watched Peter climb down from the truck "Nice work candidate," Peter smiled "now start packing up our gear."

Aidan shared a chuckle with Matt as Peters face fell. Vargas nodded behind them as he approached "Looks like we're gonna meet the mayor after all."

Aidan let out a low whistle as the fancy black cars parked before the mayor was stepping out, surrounded by guards as he approached Chief Boden "Do you think he peed at at the station before stopping by?"

The men chuckled as Matt flicked her forehead "Shut up and let's get out of here."

Peter Mills stopped dead in his tacks as he walked into the Chiefs quarter. As Wallace Boden changed his shirt, Peter couldn't tear his eyes away from the burn scars littering the elder man's back. When Boden turned, Peter cleared his threat, holding up the paperwork in his hands "Furlough requests."

The chief nodded as he took the papers and sat at his desk "Hell of a first day Mills, you handled yourself. The rest of the truck will remember that."

"Thank you chief." Peter smiled before licking his lips "Uh, Chief, one other thing, I was talking about the rescue squad, and lieutenant Casey told me not to be a crow. You know what that means?"

"Oh did he now?" Wallace hummed as he sat back in his chair "A crow wanted to be a peacock, so he put on colored feathers and went over to the peacock yard, but the peacocks, they plucked them all away. so the crow, well he tried to get back with the crows. They wanted nothing to do with him."

Peter nodded in understanding "My mom used to tell me to keep my mouth shut and just watch." he smiled at the man "I'm glad I have you here to watch, chief."

After showering back at the station, Matt took Aidan and Gabby to Lakeshore to check up on Chris. Aidan looked between Cruz, Otis and Shay as they found them in the waiting room "Any update?"

Cruz shrugged "He's in surgery, trying to find the bleed. They don't know."

Aidan blew out a breath before taking a seat beside Otis as he leant forward, his elbows resting in his knees. Matt turned spotting a surgeon as he talked with a nurse "Hey doc."

"Yes?" The man frowned as Matt approached him.

Matt frowned turning to Gabby "Uh, Dawson, what was the name of that little girl from the bridge?"

Shay sighed "Casey, don't."

Gabby hesitated as she looked into Matts eyes "Madeline. That was her name."

Matt turned to the doctor "A little girl named Madeline, pin-In from the Columbus drive bridge. Where is she?"

The doctor sighed as he looked between the two before looking to his clipboard "Madeline Pokress. Vitals are stable. Released by the end of the week."

Gabby sighed in relief at the news as Matt thanked the doctor. Chief Boden approached his team "Anything change?

"He's still in surgery." Aidan bit her lip as she looked up at the man.

Otis sighed, sitting back "Called his family, they're on their way from Wheaton."

Matt leaned down to whisper to Aidan "I'm gonna go call Hallie, come get me if there's an update?"

Aidan nodded "You got it."

The brunette was lost in thought, her mind racing through the possibilities of losing Christopher Hermann, the man who invited her into his home and his family every holiday because she didn't have one of her own. She jumped slightly as a hand touched her shoulder. Following the arm she reached a sympathetic looking Peter Mills. The candidate gestured beside her "This seat taken?"

"No," Aidan shook her head softly "Its all yours."

As one by one, every member of firehouse 51 showed up to the waiting room, Aidan's hands continued to shake. She turned to fiddle with the hem of her ripped jeans when a hand grabbed her own, stopping the movement. She froze before slowly turning to Peter who was looking at her nervously "Stop." He ordered softly, squeezing her hand in reassurance "He's going to be okay Aidan."

Aidan looked into Peters eyes as tears built up in her own as she whispered "He has to be, I can't lose anyone else."

"You won't." Peter promised and he sounded so certain that Aidan believe him. She let the boy continue to hold her hand as she interlocked their fingers feeling the warmth of his palm reassuring her, holding her steady like an anchor.