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V: Vest

*Erin is shot, but her vest takes the bullet. Jay realizes he could never live without her.

"I want everyone to move in." Voight said over the radios.

Jay and Erin got out of their car, guns in hand. They both were in bullet proof vests as they prepared to take down a man who they suspected was involved in human trafficking. They joined the rest of the team as Ruzek and Al ran towards the back of the house.

Jay immediately went towards the front. He lifted up his leg and kicked down the door. "CHICAGO PD!"

The team swarmed the house in a careful, organized fashion. They had done this so many times and it was completely natural to them. They all knew exactly where each team member was supposed to be and how to watch out for their partners.

Despite this, Jay still always kept a tab on where Erin was. He was always scanning the room for danger and for her location. As her partner, it was his responsibility to keep her safe and he refused to let anything happen to her.

"Clear!" Antonio shouted out as he entered the first room.

"Clear!" Erin shouted out from the second room.

Voight and Atwater had gone upstairs and Jay heard them shout that it was clear.

"Clear!" he yelled from the kitchen area. He turned and saw Erin open a door that led to a set of stairs. She looked back at him and he nodded, confirming that he had her back.

They went down to the basement together, Erin taking the lead. She reached over to pull on a string attached to a lightbulb that lit up the entire room. They both walked around quickly.

"Clear." Jay announced.

The two detectives went back upstairs together, meeting Al, Ruzek, and Antonio in the kitchen. Atwater and Voight joined them a moment later.

"The house is clear." Antonio stated.

Jay looked at Erin, but saw her focus was outside. He looked too and saw a man running out of the neighbor's shed.

"Right there." he said, but before he could even move, Erin was running out the door.

"CHICAGO PD!" she screamed.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion. The man turned his body and the sun reflected off of the metal in his hand.

"GUN!" Jay called out.

As he was yelling, they heard the sound of the gun going off. Erin's body hit the ground before anyone could react.

Jay was torn between going to her and chasing after the man. He knew what protocol was, but he also knew where his heart was. Luckily, he didn't have to make the choice because Antonio, Atwater, and Ruzek took off after the man who had shot their only female detective.

Jay fell to his knees at Erin's side and found the place where the bullet had hit her vest. He took one look at her face and saw the pain in her eyes. He was praying it was because the wind was knocked out of her and not because the bullet had gotten through the vest.

"Breathe, Erin." Alvin ordered as he knelt down on her other side.

He stuck his hand under her vest and made contact with her t-shirt. He felt around, but there was no blood and no place where the bullet had gone through.

"The vest caught it. You're okay." Jay grabbed her by the shoulders and sat her up. He pulled her into his arms. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, just knocked the air out of me." She took a deep breath. "I'm okay."

In the almost four years that she had been his partner, Erin had never been shot. They had been in plenty of shootouts and there had been many opportunities, but a bullet had never even gotten close to her vest. Jay couldn't help but feel like he had failed her.

"We got him." Antonio said over the radio. He told them their location.

"Al, go pick them up." Voight commanded. "Erin, are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm good."

Jay stood up and reached a hand out to her to pull her up.

"Alright. Get back to the district."

Jay and Erin walked to their car in silence. Jay couldn't believe that she had been shot.

"You okay?" she asked him.

"I should be asking you that."

"I'm fine. The vest caught it, remember? You said so yourself." she climbed into the driver's seat of the car. Erin waited until Jay got into the passenger's seat before she spoke again. "I'm probably going to have a bruise. That's it. I'm good, Jay."

"That was way too close. In the entire time we've been partners, you've never been shot before."

Erin grabbed his hand. "Odds are that I'm going to get shot again. And you're going to get shot. That's a risk we take every single day when we put on our badges. Do I hate going out there and knowing that we might not come home? Absolutely. But that's why we're partners. We keep each other safe."

"I didn't keep you safe today."

"That guy turned around before I could even register that he had a gun in his hand. There was no way that could have been prevented with the way I ran out the door like that. That was on me for not waiting until you were ready to go outside."

Jay looked at her. "Every single day, I tell you that I love you. Every time that I say it, I mean it. But I don't think I realize just how much I love you and how much I need you until there's a possibility that I could lose you."

Erin glanced over at him. She wished that she wasn't driving so that they could sit down and have this conversation together. "You're not going to lose me. I'm right here." She squeezed his hand. "I'm fine." She brought his hand up until it was resting over her heart. "See? My heart's still beating."

She pulled the car into the district and as soon as it was in park, Jay reached over and hugged her. It was kind of awkward because of the fact that they were in the car, but she melted into his embrace. He kissed the top of her head.

"I love you." She kissed his cheek. She ran her fingers through his hair gently. "I'm safe every single day because of you. I'm not ever scared going into a situation because I know that you've got my back. I trust you, Jay. More than anyone in this world."

He pulled back from the hug and rested their foreheads together. "I don't think I could ever live without you."

In the past, Erin knew that an admission like that would scare her into running. But she just smiled because she knew exactly what he meant.

"The feeling's mutual." She kissed him quickly. "Come on, we've got to get in there."

"You're sure you're okay?"

"I'm one hundred percent sure." She climbed out of the car. "Are you?"

"Yeah, I'm good." Jay kissed her one last time before they went into the district together.

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