Title: Plan C
Chapter 4 – Asking the Tough Questions

"Earth to Severide," Capp states as the squad team sits around the table at Firehouse 51 later that same day, trying to conclude an on-going game of poker.

"He's distracted," Mills snickers from the other table; Casey looking up at his friend with a small frown.

He knows that Severide had gone and talked to Nick and when he came back seemed – happy. But now…the deep thought was something he could only wonder about. But maybe it wasn't just Erin…his mind recalls Severide telling him about seeing Erin's "old friend" Randy Cameron at the scene and can't help but feel that this guy might be more than just a passing threat.

"I'm…in," Severide replies as he throws down a card and then goes back to his thoughts. Casey would be right…part of it of course was still the lingering effects from his discussion with Nick and then running into Erin but also Randy Cameron and what his future plans for staying in Chicago, if any, happened to include.

"Uh…" Capp looks at the card Severide had laid and then shakes his head.

"I'm out," Severide groans as he puts his cards on the table and then pushes himself away from it.

"What's going on?" Tony asks Casey.

"First parent teacher meeting tomorrow," Casey replies in haste.

"Oh I remember mine," Herrmann pipes up.

"Yours or your kids?" Mills retorts with a snicker and the conversation digresses from there.

"His goes back to the dinosaur age," Otis teases Herrmann. Casey, however, finishes up his task at the table and then goes in search of his friend.

"You okay?" Casey knocks on the door to Severide's office. "What's up?"

"Parent teacher tomorrow…first one. I'm sure the report on Aurora will be fine but…but what if something goes wrong? I can't let Shay down that way," Severide huffs as he looks at the little colorful reminder from Aurora's kindergarten teacher, Ms. Andrea Green.

"She'd never expect you to be perfect. You know that."

"And then the date with Erin afterwards…"

"Friday is gonna be fun," Casey grins. But before he can say another word, the overhead paging system goes off, calling them all to attention. This time, Severide can breathe a sigh of relief as he doesn't see Randy's curious expression – watching him from the sidelines.

"Watch yourselves in here! Smoke's thick!"

"Casey! Gotta vent those two windows!"

"On it! Herrmann! Mouch!"

"Window vented!"

"Capp, head upstairs!"

"Copy that!"

"Found one! Chief coming out with a live one!"

"Mills! Brett! Get ready to receive," Boden directs his two waiting medics. But just as Otis clears the building with the semi-conscious frame in his grasp a loud BANG is heard behind him; forcing panic to rush through them all.

"Casey! Severide! Report!"

"Chief…southwest ceiling has collapsed!"

"Otis! Go help Cruz in the back! Get them a way out NOW!"

"Copy that!"

"Casey!" Severide shouts as he slowly crawls along the ground.

"Herrmann and I are okay!"

"Capp! Newhouse!"

"We're all fine!"

"Thank God," Severide whispers as he crawls toward a small speck of light. "We need that way out!"

"Thirty seconds! Move toward the back!"

Boden waits anxiously outside until all his men very carefully…one by one, extricate themselves from the smoking rubble and emerge into the daylight.

"Everyone's out," Severide tells Boden after he confirms with Casey. "No one left inside."

"Was too close," Casey adds as Boden tells them 'good job' and then goes to talk to the building's owner. Casey notices Severide looking around as he approaches. "Anything…or anyone out of the ordinary?"

"No. Ah maybe it was just feeling a bad vibe from the night before. Probably already left town."

"With a big Severide target on his back," Casey quips as Severide gently chuckles. "Come on, let's clean up and get back."

Severide nods in agreement as he turns and heads toward the front of squad truck 3. On the way to 51, he pulls his phone and glances at the picture of Erin and Aurora taken the day before with Aurora wearing Erin's vest.

'Future family?' His father's words ring in his head. Of course he can't help but smile at that comment and wonders how his conversation with Erin during their first date the following night would turn out. Thankfully the rest of the day is rather mundane, one more fire but no injuries and that was always a good call.

XXXXXXXX

"You'd think she was reviewing your week's performance," Casey snickers as he nods to the salt that Severide had just shaken into his coffee.

"Ah dang it!" Severide groans as Aurora comes rushing up to him with a look of panic.

"Daddy! Daddy! I can't find my new dolly!"

He looks down at the round blue eyes that threaten to spill with tears and feels his heart sink. "Okay, let's go see where she is."

He takes her hand and then leads her back into her bedroom, groaning at the mess. "Aurora when we get back from school today, you're going to clean up all this mess."

"Yes daddy," Aurora mumbles with a small huff; Severide's lips actually twisting upward into a smirk. After five minutes of searching he finally finds the doll from Erin and looks at it with a warm smile.

"Do you want to take her to school?"

"Yes!" Aurora states as she snatches it from his grasp.

"Okay but don't lose her."

As much as he wants to scold her about her manners, his mind is too agitated with her first audible report and making sure everything is in order that he forgoes it this time. After she's completely ready for school they rejoin Casey in the kitchen to have some breakfast and then it's out the door and heading toward school.

Aurora chatters away from her booster seat in the back; Severide trying to pay attention and then engage when appropriate but at the same time his mind is now thinking about later in the day.

"Welcome Mr. Severide and hello Aurora."

"Hi," she answers her teacher with a sweet smile.

"Please come in and sit down."

"Thanks," Severide offers her a smile, sitting down at the teacher's desk and looking at Aurora who plunks herself down at the activity table.

"I know I say this will be informal but you'd think you're the one being reviewed here."

"My friend said the same thing," Severide nervously chuckles. "Aurora's mother and I had made a list of questions to ask for…" he stammers as he pulls out the well-worn piece of paper and holds it in his somewhat shaky grasp.

"Well this is just the first week so it's going to be more informal than the ones to come during the year," Andrea tells Severide with a kind tone.

"Informal…right. What's that?" He asks weakly.

"I just want to give you an update on how she's doing socially and emotionally, being away from her home and family for the first time on her own, with strangers. I can tell you a bit about what she likes best and a few hints at what I think she won't like as much going forward. Then you can ask questions. In a few months' time we'll a more in-depth review which will get into her learning abilities compared with other students and where she's fitting in with her class and if she's on target with basic learning points."

"Okay," Severide answers simply.

"But trust me from what I've seen so far, you have nothing to worry about."

The two of them talk a bit longer before Severide shakes her hand and then gathers up his daughter to leave, his mind elated and relieved.

"Uncle Matt!" Aurora shouts as she rushes into the arms of her waiting Uncle.

"So…did you pass?" Casey asks Aurora who merely shrugs; Casey laughing at her reply. "Hungry?"

"Yes since I didn't have breakfast."

The three of them head for the nearest family friendly restaurant, taking a booth and then sitting down to talk about the morning's events.

"I think she's single," Severide answers Casey after he had asked a few questions about his teacher. "And she looks like Kerry Washington."

"Can't go wrong there," Casey grins as his cheeks warm.

"Ask her out, I'm sure she'll say yes," he tosses as him in a cheeky tone; Casey's lips pursing at Severide's mocking statement. They talk a bit longer, Severide happy to report that his daughter was fitting in socially and although her little emotions had been pushed to the limits at the start of the week, she seemed to even out like the rest of the children and was having no troubles adjusting or obeying the things asked of her.

"She has to work on sharing her toys though," Severide huffs as Aurora look up with a small pout. "Hey we all have stuff to work on," he adds in haste. "But it wasn't anything to be alarmed about."

On the way back home, Severide reminds Casey that his father was coming by for dinner the following night; both of them happy when Benny dropped by as it meant free beer to restock their fridge. Once home, Casey reminds Aurora that he'd be the babysitter; Severide laughing as he knows Aurora will be the one calling the shots.

"Are you saying I'm a pushover?"

"Can you say no to that face?" Severide counters as Aurora looks up with an adoring grin.

"Nope," both huff at once and then laugh.

XXXXXXXX

"Why am I so nervous?"

She asks herself the soul-searching question and then pauses to check her reflection one last time before heading for the door. Of course she's also excited but she knows from her previous conversations with Kelly Severide that he wasn't just looking for a one night stand…that he wanted something more permanent, long-term, especially for his daughter.

'Kelly doesn't bring women back to our place,' Casey had told her a few weeks back, 'it'll confuse Aurora.'

And she couldn't fault him for wanting to put his beloved child first. But for her, her nervousness starts to creep up when she thinks about her own situation with her mother and how she had vowed to herself a long time ago that she'd never want a child to grow up in the same family situation as she did so motherhood wasn't something he had considered. And so far no other men had made her want to break that promise to herself; until now. Until Kelly Severide and his daughter came into the picture.

'You're not your mother,' Voight had tried to convince her long time ago; especially when she'd start into needless self-depreciation. 'If you want that…then you'll be a great mother.'

And to tell herself that she didn't have feelings for little Aurora Severide would be a lie. Every time she sees or is in the company of the darling girl her affection grows stronger and stronger. She grabs her leather jacket and heads for the door, pulling it open and then uttering a soft gasp when Randy appears.

"What are you doing here?"

"Busy?"

"Heading out," she replies, not feeling the need to dignify him with any other information.

"With your boyfriend?"

"I gotta go."

"Whose kid was that the other day?"

"A friend's. Why are you still here?" Erin asks sourly.

"That guy from the diner? Didn't think you were into kids. Guess more has changed than I thought," Randy states sourly as he follows her to the front entrance. "You sure you wanna be saddled with someone else's kid?" He kinda mocks. "Stuck with the dreaded step-mom title? Kids hate step parents. There go your Friday nights."

Erin stops suddenly and turns sharply on her heel and glares at Randy with slightly narrowed eyes. Easy, her mind warns, don't give him anything to use, especially don't give him anything on Kelly or his daughter – you know what he's capable of. "If you're so bored I think Hank wouldn't mind the pop-in. He'd love to catch up on old times."

Randy only utters a small hiss under his breath as she turns and heads for the nearest waiting taxi-cab; his jaw clenching as she gets in and disappears from view. "Yeah…Mr. Fireman…we'll see how long this lasts!"

Don't listen to his words…they're crap! Her mind berates as she starts to think about her own glum childhood. But as she nears the restaurant, her negativity is pushed away and her excitement inside builds; literally bursting inwardly as she enters the restaurant right on time. She had told him they could meet so it would seem a bit less formal, wanting to take some pressure off both of them for their first date. Plus she wasn't sure where she'd be from work on that day. This however, worked perfectly.

"Hey," he greets her warmly, standing up and giving her a soft kiss on the cheek; flooding her body with a tingling sensation all the way down to her feet. "Great place."

"Smells good in here, I'm hungry," she states in haste; her eager words making him smile as they both sit back down. You meant he smells good, her brain teases. But hers wasn't the only one feeling the chemical charge as his brain warns him to back down boy…this is only the first evening…

"I ordered you…" Severide pauses as he pulls the menu and shows it to her.

"Some coffee flavored beer," she reads with a grin, lowering the menu to see him watching and offering him a coy glance. "You better not have tried any before me."

"Nope just got here. How was work?"

"Finally put Orolov where he belongs. In jail…for life. How did the parent-teacher meeting go?"

"Pretty good. Aurora needs to practice sharing," he states with a heavy frown. "I guess at home it's different because it's only me and Matt and well…there's not much of a fight for the her Dora dolly collection," he stammers somewhat nervously.

But his nervousness only adds to his appealing charm; something that is endearing him to her more and more.

"Is there things you can do at home to help with that?"

"Guess I can get my own doll and see if when I give it to her she'll give it back? I uh…so enough about…" he starts. But his speech is stopped by her hand as it rests on his, prompting him to look up in wonder.

"She's your life and I want to be a part of it. And that means hearing about her progression at school."

"Are you sure?" He asks in haste; his words fast and almost jumbled. "No, it's not that I doubt you. Look I just…I mean I didn't exactly have the most solid example of a father for a role model for me you know? Half the time I wonder if Aurora will grow up to be a closet axe murderer," he lightly quips, making her gently laugh. "He sure loves her now though and that's great but um…but it's not like I can pick up the phone and ask for parenting advice from him."

"I think you're doing a great job," she tells him in truth. "And it was her first week with new kids and having to share all the toys and being in a new environment. I was the same when I started at 21."

"Didn't want to share the guns?" Severide retorts with a smirk as she nods in agreement.

"Still don't. Or the car keys."

"I can see that," he smiles.

"Besides…I can see you playing with a Dora doll."

"Life sized?" He tosses back with a playful snicker.

He had wondered on the way over if she'd be bored talking about his daughter's first week of school, but remembered Nick's words that anyone who wanted to love him, be with him and make a future life together with him would have to want Aurora to be as much a part of it as the adults were. So far…it was sounding that way. But his own inner self-doubt starts to creep up, reminding him this is the first date and that doing just regular day, mundane, far from exciting things might be another story. What if she gets bored in the long run? With everyday life stuff?

"So…what should we start with?" Erin ponders as she peruses the top part of the menu. But when she hears silence she looks overtop her menu, gently arching her brows. "What?"

'Just please tell me you won't pick a woman as a role model for Aurora that eats like a bird!'

"Ah just something Shay say…about female role models for Aurora."

"What did she say?" Erin asks directly.

"She said they had to be funny…and smart…and beautiful," his voice dies out in a soft whisper as he looks at her with a loving glance.

"Sounds like her," Erin retorts as he chuckles; their hands lingering in a locked position a few moments longer.

"Yeah," he sighs as he tries to pull his hand away. But when she hangs on a bit longer, his head slightly tilts to the right in wonder.

"I don't mind talking about the tougher stuff," she assures him with a squeeze.

"Just didn't want to come out with both guns blazing you know? If it were just me it uh…well it wouldn't…not that it wouldn't matter but…" he pauses with a frown as this time it's her turn to lean in closer, her lips brushing his cheek on the way to his ear.

"I'm here to stay," she whispers; his lips cracking into a wide smile as her cheek lingers near his. But as she goes to pull away, his strong hand gently cups her soft skin, his lips crushing hers for a brief but searing kiss; both heart rates instantly elevated.

They both break away with flushed faces when the waiter discreetly makes his presence known to take their first order. Severide eases himself back into the booth while Erin places their 'appy' order, telling the waiter they were in no hurry and they'd place their dinner order shortly.

"Bossy right?" She gently teases herself as he nods and grins.

"Don't think I mind," Severide tells her in truth. "So I uh…I know I told you about Nick…"

"Kelly I don't need to know what you talk about. It's private."

"I told him about you."

"What'd you say?" She tosses back in haste as he grins widely.

"Private?" He wags his brows.

"Hey you're the one that mentioned it."

"Okay fine. Actually, he…he invited me to his engagement party."

"He's engaged? That's great."

"Yeah Shawna. Only saw pictures and heard things but sounds nice…I guess," he stammers. "He said I could bring a date and well…I like Matt but you know…"

"Not that way?" She wags her brows as he snickers.

"Well Matt would be a cheap date," he teases his absent friend, "free beer and food? He's sold."

"Shay would have appreciated the scandal."

"Yeah and only her," he lightly groans.

"I can only imagine the Instagram shots," she teases as he laughs, remembering one time Shay had threatened to take a picture of them working in the backyard and post it with a dirty caption.

"Would you like to come with me?"

"I'd love to?"

"Great," he replies as he feels another small burden lifted. "He said I just tell people we're friends and that's it; not that I know him through therapy. He also said…"

"Whatever you tell him, stays with you and him. I respect that."

"He's really helped a lot."

"I'm happy that you have him as a friend."

With those comforting words, his anxiety starts to settle even more; his mind telling him that already the evening was a success and that nothing could ruin it.

"Here you go," the waiter comes back with a large sample platter, placing it between them and then offering to refill their beers.

"Actually…can we try another flavor?" Severide interjects as he hastily reaches for the beer menu. He points to something that Erin can't see, ordering two sampler glasses and then sending the waiter on his way. "Feeling adventurous?"

"Always," she replies with a kind smile. "So what else did Aurora's teacher say?"

"Well…" he starts into what she had told him about all the kids in the class and how they interacted and their favorite group project to work on. As they both slowly enjoy their appetizer each of them settles into the knowledge that they both want to be here, with the other and that so far the evening was a success.

However, a few external forces were starting to brew, promising to pummel the fledging relationship with would-be family and relationship issues that neither had contemplated in their solely-single lives.

A/N: alright so I didn't want to rush the date and you'll see more lindseride goodness up next…how did you like the start? Once again gotta get a few real world thoughts/concerns in there and Randy of course isn't helping. He's voicing what he feels are concerns but will she listen to them? and what danger does he still pose to Severide (come on its me and you know I love my whump hehe) first parent teacher and ah Aurora…hehe some broments of course and Shay memories (always *sigh*) So please do review before you go and thanks so much!