I am SO sorry this has taken so long! I really cant make any excuses other than life and work. I am currently in Louisiana- WOO- so figured I should update lol.

I hope this chapter makes up for the wait and all of its 7000 words lol anyone know the song that the title is from...what's the next line? heheh

Please review! :D

Chapter 6 – It Started With A Whisper

"How are you feeling Pete?" Shay leaned over the side of the bed, giving him a light hug, watching him smile as everyone made their way into this hospital room, happy to see him up and awake.

Coughing slightly, Peter spoke, "I'm doing good. Glad to be alive really…" He looked around, his face falling a little when he noticed everyone was there except Matt.

"Don't worry, Casey is on his way in, he just had to stop and get something, he shouldn't be too far off…" Gabby touched his arm, she knew he wanted to thank Matt for saving his life, it would just have to wait a little longer. Matt had been so relieved when they knew Mills was going to be aright, he would be happy to see him now. Mills just nodded, moving still took whatever little energy he had so things were a little harder than usual.

As they all settled into the hospital, they all began to laugh and talk, happy to have their family back together and in one piece, but as they began to chat and laugh, they heard a commotion from outside in the hallway. At first they ignored it but the voices got louder, certain ones sticking out to the fire fighters.

Moving towards the door slowly, Gabby, Shay and Kelly looked out the window, finding Matt standing in the hallway, surrounded by nurses, he looked unsure of himself. The three moved from the room into the hallway, followed by the rest of the firehouse, their curiosity peaking.

"What happened in none of you business."

Matt's voice echoed as they came to his side, Gabby heading straight for Matt, the desire to be by his side too strong for her to say no to.

"You're disgusting, how the hell could you so something like that?"

One of the nurses spat back at him, blocking his way so he couldn't leave, stuck there getting abuse thrown at him. Gabby gasped, she knew what this was about and she hated that they woman had gone after him, clearly being told different information to what had actually happened.

Matt stayed silent as they nurses spoke, he was getting angry but he wouldn't let them get to him, he couldn't. "You're an asshole Matt, a real piece of work." Someone else yelled out, causing Kelly and Hermann to step forward to Matt's defence but that didn't seem to help, they only fuelled the yelling. "How could you do that her?"

Gabby couldn't believe that Matt hadn't said anything. The things that he had been called and the names that were used were inappropriate and uncalled for. It was clear that Matt wasn't going to fight for himself and so Gabby decided to do it for him. Standing by his side, she huffed, "You all have no idea what you are talking about! How about you all just back off!" This caused everyone to stop talking. The rest of the firehouse quietening down as it was clear that Gabby knew more of what was going on, the nurses eyeing off Gabby as though she would be their next target.

Gabby turned to Matt, shock on her face that he wasn't standing up for himself, pleading in her eyes for him to say something. "Matt please, you have to tell them!" Gabby was furious, what these people had said to Matt, it wasn't right and the fact that he wasn't saying anything back to them or defending himself, made it all even worse. He didn't deserve this abuse and he didn't deserve anyone thinking less of him.

Matt sighed, he knew he should set the record straight but he just didn't want to go into the messiness of it all. He didn't want them all to know, he just wanted to be able to move on with his life. He loved that Gabby was so worried about the situation, so worried about him but he didn't want to get into it with these people.

"Yeah come on Matt, tell us. Tell us how you walked out on Hallie when she told you she was pregnant. Abandoning your own child." One of the nurses scoffed again, she was disgusted with Matt. And one by one, each of them yelled out to Matt, beginning their abuse once again. The others from the firehouse tried to back Matt but it wasn't until one of them turned on Gabby did things change.

"You stand there with your whore while your ex girlfriend goes through this alone. You should be ashamed of yourself Gabriella."

And that was when Gabby snapped, she knew he didn't want them all to know, she had been backing him up by just trying to get them to leave him alone but this was enough, this had gone to far. None of this was Matt's fault, he shouldn't have been getting the abuse he was. "Matt just tell them! Tell them what really happened…" But when Matt didn't say anything, his head down, Gabby turned to the group of nurses. "She cheated on him. Hallie had been having an affair for the last 6 months of their relationship! The baby isn't Matt's!"

The silence in the room was deafening, each of the looking around, unsure of what to say or do, no one really knowing what was going on. Matt sighed, this was what he didn't want, he didn't want everyone to worry about him, he didn't want them feeing sorry for him. Rubbing his forehead, he looked down at Gabby, finding her hand resting on his back while the other was raised in the air in a stopped motion, he could feel the warmth through his shirt of her hand on his back.

The nurses stared Matt down, looking between Matt and Gabby, unsure of what to say. "Yeah I'm sure." Was the reply, a roll of the eyes from one of the nurses in front of them.

Behind Matt and Gabby, the rest of the firehouse, came to their side, they were standing up for their lieutenant even though they didn't actually know what was going on.

"It's true." Gabby tried again, looking up at Matt who looked down at her, a small smile telling her that it was alright, he wasn't upset that she had said something, and he could tell that she was worried that he would be upset with her. "Hallie had been cheating on him for 6 months, she is pregnant and it's not Matt's alright. He left and this has been killing him ever since. You haven't seen the pain he has been in all right. Maybe you should ask a HalHallHallie about Dr Mitchell!" At this point everyone was shocked. "I'm sorry Matt but you don't deserve any of this Matt. You're precious Hallie isn't the saint you all think she is."

Silence fell over them all, nurses glancing at each other and the fire fighters watching Matt, this was not what they expected to hear and not what they thought had happened with Hallie. Slowly Hermann reached out and touched Matt's shoulder, getting his attention, and causing him to turn around, his eyes skirting over everyone there, dropping his head in embarrassment. A more shocked looked on Shay and Severide's faces, both having no idea what had happened.

Clearing his throat, Matt ducked his head and moved from the group, needing some air but also needing to get away from the looks of sadness and pity he was getting. Behind him Gabby sighed, she was upset with herself that she had said it out loud, upset that she had done the one thing that he had asked her not to do. Sniffing deeply, she wiped away a tear, Hermann at her side, "It's alright kid. Maybe it's for the best…"

But this shocked Gabby, how could her telling everyone be for the best if it wasn't what Matt wanted, she never wanted to upset him. Glancing back at Hermann and the group she shook her head, following Matt out to the hallway, needing to talk to him, needing to apologise.

It wasn't hard to find him in the end, she had gotten to know him enough to know that when he was upset he liked quiet places. He liked being alone and that's where she found him, sitting in the far corner of what looked like a little courtyard, sun shining down the opening in the roof, the green grass brightening up the area. He looked so small, almost like the way he had when he had told her about Hallie and what had happened.

It broke her heart to see him like that, to know that she was the one who had upset him like that. Slowly she made her way to his side, sitting down quietly, her hands on her lap, not wanting to push things too far just yet. They sat in silence for what felt like forever, she could feel the anger coming off him, feel the pain and the disappointment.

What had she done?

"I'm sorry Matt…" It almost didn't need to be said, of course she was sorry, he knew that and she knew that but it still happened and now he had to deal with everyone knowing. When she didn't get a reply, she tried again, "I didn't meant to say it, really. I just…I couldn't stand to see them attacking you like that. You didn't deserve it, you did nothing wrong." But it didn't seem to help, Matt was just angry. At her? At himself? At Hallie? At everything? He honestly didn't know at that point but he did know he was angry.

She tried to reach for him, her hand twitching to touch his but he pulled away, he just really wanted to be alone. He didn't mean to upset Gabby, he didn't mean to hurt her, even if he was angry with her, he never wanted to hurt her.

But that's what he did when he pulled away from her touch, he could hear her heart breaking even more, but he just didn't have the energy to fix it. Suddenly next to him she stood, clearly she was not wanted there and she didn't want to force him to be around her if he didn't want her by his side. He barely heard the soft whisper of another apology before she rushed to the door, letting it slam behind her, missing the tear the that slipped down his cheek.

Matt didn't know how long he had sat in that courtyard for, but he needed the time alone, he needed the quiet and he needed the fresh air, in the end it honestly did him quite well. He was able to work out his feelings, he was angry with himself for getting into this situation, should he have just been honest from the beginning? Should he have just told everyone and gotten over it? Probably. He was angry with Hallie, there was days he would be angry with her and days that he wasn't, today he was but because of Gabby those days of anger were few and far between.

Oh Gabby.

He was angry with her as well, or at least he wanted to be. He really couldn't blame her for saying what she did, he was getting abused for something that wasn't even his fault so why shouldn't she have said something? He wasn't angry with her, not really, he was just hurt, hurt that this all still affected him, that it was all still affecting him.

She had been the only one by his side when he needed it, she had pulled him from the bottom of a bottle and he would forever be grateful to her for that he just hoped she knew that. Sighing deeply he stood, he really needed to go and talk to her but he also needed to talk to the firehouse, they – his family – deserved an explanation, they had all been through so much over the years and this was something he should have confided in them about.

But he wasn't going to do that at the hospital, he needed some time to rest, he had gotten tired all of a sudden, all the emotions running through him had taken their toll. Slipping out of the courtyard, he was able to make it past the nurse's station and the waiting room without being seen, before heading straight home, he couldn't face them all, not just yet.

Everyone had already made it into shift a few days later, all still a little hushed from the events of the last few days, Mils' being in hospital, finding out about Matt and Hallie's break up, it was hurting them all. Matt made it just in time for role call, tucking in the back of his shirt as he stood against the wall. He really had honestly just slept in, he hadn't found the courage to face his family but he had to and he was going to do it today.

"Alright everyone, first the good news," Boden moved into the room followed by two people, both were not recognised by anyone in the firehouse. "I heard from the hospital last night, Mills is going to be released at the end of the week and should be back on shift at the end of the month, he has been given the time off to heal." Everyone clapped so happy to know that he was going to be ok and be back on shift in just over 3 weeks.

"And on that, I would like to introduce Nick Palmer who will be taking over his position on Truck until he is back on shift," Boden looked over to Matt who just nodded, "And this is Annie Clink, she is filling in for Dawson today who has requested a personal day." This caught Matt's attention, he hadn't noticed she wasn't there, surprisingly considering he had tried to call and text her over the last few days and hadn't heard back at all.

Shay looked over at Matt who just looked lost, obviously he didn't know where she was and then she looked to Kelly who just looked sad, a look she hadn't seen on his face before. "So please, make them both feel welcome. Have a good day all."

But Matt stopped them as most of the stood, he needed to do this, "Ah can I have a minute?" Slowly they all sat back down, turning to face him. Swallowing deeply, he looked around the room, now that he was standing there he wasn't too sure about what to say and without Gabby there to back him up he didn't know where to start. Looking over at Boden, who just nodded, Matt began.

"First off I want to say sorry for what happened at the hospital the other day, it wasn't appropriate and it shouldn't have happened. However, everything that Gabby said was true." There was a low murmur in the group, you only believe so much until you hear it from the person it's about. "Hallie and I broke up because she had been cheating on me with a doctor from Lakeshore. She's about 6 months pregnant now and the baby isn't mine."

That was harder than he thought it would be, all those eyes staring back at him, the sadness and pity back. "I ah…I'm sorry that I never said anything to you all but I just didn't want to make a big deal about it, I guess I never wanted you all to feel sorry for me or something like that." He shrugged, he hated being emotional but this was his family.

Everyone sat quietly for a moment before Herrman stood, making his way to Matt's side, reaching out and pulling him in for a tight hug. Herrman was the father of this family and he hated seeing Matt so hurt. "It's ok kid, you have us all." He pulled away from Matt, smiling gently, he wanted to be there for his lieutenant.

"Thanks, Herrman." Matt placed his hand on his shoulder, looking over at the group who just nodded, agreeing with Herrman. "Thanks guys."

It wasn't too long before everyone had split up, each moving to their own areas, Nick and Annie starting to talk to some of the others in the firehouse, Severide and Matt finding themselves in their offices, finishing up paperwork.

Matt glanced down at his phone, desperate to hear from Gabby but he hadn't yet and it was starting to upset him. Reaching for his phone, he pulled up her profile, her facing staring up at him, making him smile widely. They had been out at Navy Pier together one day, enjoying the sun and the day off, they had somehow gotten to taking photos of each other, Matt being able to snap one of her with her hair curled down her face, her Aviators on her face and her tongue sticking out. She just looked too cute, also something he had told her at the time. Instantly that had become his contact photo for her, he loved it. His finger hovered over the call button, debating on if he could deal with another rejected call from her.

"I wouldn't bother, she won't answer." Matt looked to find Severide leaning against his door, arms crossed over his chest. He could read Matt so well; he knew exactly what he wanted to do.

Matt groaned as he placed his phone back down, clearly Severide knew something that Matt didn't and he didn't like that but he understood, he knew that Kelly and Gabby had been close friends longer than he and Gabby but he hated not knowing what was happening with her. "Can you at least tell me if she is ok? I wanted to apologise for how I treated her the other day at the hospital." Matt rubbed his forehead, still upset with himself that he had spoken to her the way he had.

But Kelly shook his head, "She is alright. Yes she was a little upset about that but she understands she upset you. But that isn't why she isn't answering your calls. I can't tell you more than that but just believe me when I say that she is alright."

Matt nodded again, he would take what he could get from Kelly, but he also knew Kelly wouldn't give up much more than that and so he turned back towards his desk, intent on getting some work done but turned back suddenly, opening his mouth but Kelly smiled, "I will tell her you are worried and sorry." He laughed, he really did know Matt well.

Nodding a thank you Matt turned back to his work, hoping that doing something would help to get his mind off of Gabby.

Matt smiled as Gabby took the seat next to him at the bar, feeling her warmth against his arm as she leaned into him, greeting him with a bright smile that she subconsciously only saved for him. "Hope you haven't been at it all night…" She looked over at him, her smile fading a little as she looked down at the beer in his hand, Matt smiling and shaking his head as he downed another sip of the beer.

Gabby worried about him, about his drinking and about how he was taking the idea of Hallie having a baby with someone else. She was concerned for him, always checking in on him, texting or calling to make sure he was doing alright.

And he was. At least now, since his conversation with her at the back of the firehouse, he had spent another couple of weeks drinking pretty hard. After seeing Hallie, seeing her pregnant, had hit him hard, he had never expected to see her again or at least never expected to her to turn up at the firehouse looking for him. And then to have the confrontation he had at the hospital with the nurses, it had hit him again.

He had spent most nights at Molly's, earning concerning looks from the rest of the firehouse, but mostly from Gabby, she was the only who knew just how much he had been hurting, the only one who could see what it was doing to him. He would go to bed drunk, wake up hung over and do it all again the next night.

That was until she sat by his side that night, sitting by him in the furthest booth before leaning over and taking his beer from him, she hadn't been able to see him properly when he was getting drinks but he had seen Herrman come to his side a few times throughout the night, she had hoped he wasn't bringing him beers. She had downed what was left, which wasn't much in the end smirking at the shocked look on his face as she placed the now empty glass in front of him.

"Stop doing this to yourself Matt…please…" This was when she placed her hand against his, squeezing his fingers gently. She was begging him to stop drinking like he had been, she was worried about him and that's when he realised that that was what he needed, he had needed someone by his side that wasn't going to let him continue, that was going to tell him like it was and not worry about upsetting him. He needed his ass kicked and that's what Gabby was doing.

And so as they sat in that booth together, he shook his head, smiling, "Nah, this has been my only one tonight." Gabby looked up at him from under her lashes, part of her clearly not believing him, "Hey, I promise ok…" He needed her to believe him.

"Hey um...I'm sorry for the other day, I shouldn't have told them and-" But Matt cut Gabby off before she could say anymore, she shouldn't have been apologising for what happened, he should have been apologising for what he did afterwards.

Matt put his hand up, stopped her from talking, before placing it down on her shoulder, "No, don't it should be me who apologies, I shouldn't have reacted to you the way I had after." Gabby just nodded, she was still upset but she also knew there was no reason to push it if he wouldn't let her now.

As close as they had gotten over the last month, always talking about how Matt was doing and what had happened, they had never spoken about what Gabby had told him. They never talked about the abusive relationship she had been in or how she was coping, he never mentioned how sorry he was or how he couldn't believe that someone had hurt her the way her ex had.

But that didn't mean he didn't want to. He wanted to talk to her about it, wanted to hold her close as she told him the horrors she had faced, wanted to hold her close as she cried from the pain of those memories, wanted to hold her close as she looked up at him and thanked him like she had when she had told him the first time.

He just wanted to hold her close.

He hated that realisation, the realisation that he was starting to have feelings for this hot head, this sassy, grumpy, tough as nails, beautiful, and amazing girl. He could feel those feelings growing the more time he spent with her and he wouldn't have it any other way right now. If Matt was honest with himself, he was falling for her, hard and fast.

"Where have you been?" He had noticed that she hadn't been around Molly's like she had usually been, plus she'd had a shift off earlier in the week and she had turned up late to a shift after that as well. She had been a little distant lately, staring into space, lost in her own thoughts and just hard to get a hold of. He was worried about her.

Gabby thought for a moment, there was so much going on in her mind that she didn't really know where to start to explain it all to him. She could see the worry in his eyes, she also knew that he had been calling and texting her recently and she had just not replied or answered. She felt bad, she really did, she wanted to open up to him about everything but it was just hard.

She wanted to tell him everything, to tell him exactly what had happened in her past relationship but it scared her. She was scared of how he would react, scared of how he would look at her and scared of what he might think. She found herself worrying more and more about what Matt thought recently. She had starting spending a little more time in the bathroom getting ready before heading to shift, picking out particular clothing to wear when she knew he would be around.

She was starting to fall for him and that terrified her.

But he had always been there for her, over the last few months, he hadn't pulled away form her, he was looking out for her, trying to make her laugh and smile, just wanting to be close to her and she loved it.

Gabby never thought that Matthew Casey would become her best and closest friend in such a short time or at all…considering how they had been towards each other since meeting but not, she couldn't image her life without him.

"Hey you ok?"

Gabby blinked back at matt, realising he had been watching her with a raised eyebrow and concern written on his face. He had asked her a question and she had yet to answer it, why hadn't she answered the question yet? "Oh ah...yeah I'm good. I had a couple of things I had to do before heading over." She shrugged, really not wanting to make a big deal about it all but it was clear that Matt didn't believe her, what could she have had to do at almost midnight?

But Matt nodded anyway, he knew she would tell him when she was ready, she usually did, holding back for a short period of time before she sought him out, usually spending time with him in his office or just hanging out together. They both sought each other out constantly, needing each other.

Gabby just leaned into his side, resting her head on his shoulder, something she did when there was something bothering her, something he had learned about her pretty quickly. And he would let her, revealing in the knowledge that she would seek him out for comfort. But against him tonight, she sighed, something really was bothering her, something that he could tell she was trying to tell him.

"Hey...I ah…I want to show you something..." Gabby lifted her head from his shoulder, looking up at him with, hope in her eyes, hope that he would go with her, hope that what she was about to show him wouldn't change his thoughts about her. She stood from the seat, holding out her hand to him, something he took gladly.

Matt looked up at her, smiling, "Yeah of course." He threw some money on the table top and stood, never letting go of her hand before leading her outside. He missed the smirk that Hermann sent their way as they left together.

Outside Gabby let out a sigh, a puff of air coming from her lips as the cold air surrounded them, she was so sure about showing him this but now that they were outside, she had lost that confidence. Silently they made their way to Gabby's car, not knowing where she wanted to go it was obvious that she would be taking them there, Matt never let go of her hand, he was holding onto her for as long as she would let him.

Sitting in the car Matt sighed, he could see Gabby's hand rubbing against the steering wheel, she was nervous, worried. All the things that Matt wished she wasn't. Slowly he reached out and placed his hand against hers, squeezing it tightly, not saying anything just giving her some time.

That was 15 minutes ago, 15 minutes of sitting in silence, Matt not knowing where they were going, he laughed, "Gabby where the hell are you taking me?" But she said nothing, just kept driving for another few minutes, staring at the rode, still unsure of what to actually tell him.

After a few moments had passed, Gabby turned into a set of gates, darkness surrounding them, as she pulled into the parking lot, Matt swallowing deeply, now very nervous. He got out of the car slowly, looking around the dark area, unsure of what was going on. "Gabby?" He turned around to her, finding her standing by his side suddenly. "You're not going to kill me, are you?"

He listened to her laugh, it was light and happy, ironic considering they were now walking up the path of a cemetery. He stopped to look around, not realising that she had just continued without him, "Gabs this isn't funny..." Matt jogged up by her side, figuring the best place for him would be next to her, so he didn't get lost. Rubbing his hands together, Matt pushed them into his pockets as they rounded the corner, stopping at a small plaque on the grass.

Slowly she knelt down, her hand reaching out in front of her before gently touching the iron lettering. Matt stood behind her, listening as she started to speak, "He was always controlling, I think I always knew he was always like that but I was too strong willed to really be controlled by him..." She hadn't turned around to face him, choosing just to talk into the open air.

"I found out I was pregnant about a year into the relationship and it was amazing. He was kind and gentle, but still there was always something about him, the things he would do or say, it was always there." This time she did turn to face him, Matt not haven't said anything since she started talking, she needed to know he was still there.

Slowly Matt came to her side, kneeling against the grass along side her, showing her that he was going to be by her side no matter what. "When I was 7 months, I just knew something was wrong, I could feel it. I could feel that the baby wasn't moving and I could just tell something was wrong. At the hospital they told me that the umbilical cord had wrapped around my baby's neck and she had died." Matt swallowed deeply those words, shaking his head, why had something like that happened to her?

Gabby rubbed her nose with the back of her hand, the cold air and the sadness coming over her. "I cried, I screamed, I fought but in the end, I delivered my baby girl, stillborn." No matter how many times she ran over these memories in her head, it still hurt like it did when it had happened. "Lilly, my Lilly...I held her for so long, the nurses had to force me to give her up, promising me that my boyfriend was there, that he would be in as soon as possible."

She laughed.

Gabby actually laughed at what she was saying. "He wasn't there, he hadn't even come to the hospital when he was told I was there. He was out drinking." Carefully, Gabby leaned against Matt's shoulder; the warmth he was giving off was what she needed, he still hadn't said anything and that bothered her a little but she needed to get the rest of this out.

"That's when it turned. After I lost the baby, he turned. His control turned into verbal abuse, he would come home drunk almost every night, come see me at work to make sure I wasn't screwing around." She sighed, wrapping her arms around herself, she could feel Matt lean into her, tensing a little when she spoke. "One night he came home, I was at the table looking at the pictures of the sonograms that I had...he hit me."

Gabby turned her head away from Matt, ashamed of what had happened, what she had let happen. "It got worse, each night would be the same, bruises and arguments and things being thrown at me." She shook her head, "I became a person I didn't recognise."

Matt couldn't stop himself, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, bringing her into him, onto his lap as she wrapped her arms around his neck, he placed a kiss to her forehead, feeling her sigh against him. "I remember calling Kelly one night. We had become really good friends through Shay and so after he..." She swallowed, "...After Jason came home with some friends and...forced me..." Her voice trailed off, it was still so hard to talk about it.

But Matt was there, holding her up, giving her strength, the fact that he had pulled her close to him meant more to her than anything. "I called Kelly and I just remember crying. He picked me up and took me to his place. And I spent the next two weeks living in his spare room, crying most nights, holding onto him for dear life when I just couldn't hold on anymore."

This was when she looked up at Matt, tears in both their eyes. "Kelly saved my life, I owe him everything..." Gabby sighed as she wrapped her arm around his waist, needing to be close to him. "I promised myself that I would never let myself get into that situation ever again, I would never feel as scared as I did when I was with Jason." Gabby felt Matt nod against her, his lips touching her head once more, holding her tightly as he digested the information he had been given.

"She would have been 5 during the week, the day I had off work was her birthday..." and that's all that was needed for Matt to realise why she had been so off the past week. Gabby clung to him tightly as she let her emotions take over, it had been a long time since she had felt herself cry, let alone cry In front of someone, but she needed it and she needed Matt.

Holding her tightly, Matt rocked her, whispering sweet words into her ear as her fingers tangled in his shirt, she was now holding onto him for dear life.

The drive back to Matt's apartment was quiet, mostly because Gabby had fallen asleep, Matt deciding that she was too tired to drive and so he had jumped in the drivers side, letting Gabby close her eyes. He smiled as he looked over at her, her arm resting against the window, fist holding her head up. She was beautiful.

It was much later than he thought by the time he pulled up outside his home, they had spent a few hours just sitting on the grass, Gabby holding onto him, he just holding her, he wanted to take away her sadness, take way her pain from the memories of what she had been through.

When she did speak, her voice was soft, light; she talked about how excited she was to become a mother and all the plans she had in place. He never dared ask her questions though, choosing to let her work through her grief in her own way, it was clear that she had been holding onto a lot of this pain for a long time.

He also reminded himself to thank Kelly next time he saw him, thankful that he looked after her when she had needed it most, however he wasn't even sure Shay knew what had happened.

Killing the engine, Matt thought about waking her up, thinking that she needed to drive home but he didn't want her to leave, he didn't want her to drive home being so tired. Slowly he leaned over, brushing his hand against her cheek, watching as she turned into the touch, sighing against him. "Hey Gabs, you wanna wake up or wanna crash in my spare room?"

He hoped that she would say she wanted to stay, hoped that she would willingly want to be by his side tonight. Slowly she opened her eyes, blinking up at him before she realised where she was.

Gabby thought for a minute, she was really tired, however she really shouldn't have been enjoying his touch, she really shouldn't be thinking about kissing him as he looked down at her, she really shouldn't drive home and she really shouldn't be wanting to take him up on his offer for crashing at his place.

Sitting up a little she sighed, she really had had enough of not taking her chances when she got them. She knew he was just being polite and caring, worried about her driving home when she was so tired but his hand was still against her cheek, his fingers a light pressure that was driving her crazy.

And just like that, she was out of the car, following him up the steps and into his apartment. The spare bedroom sounded good, the spare bedroom in Matt's apartment sounded good, spending the night with Matt sound good.

His apartment was nice, spacious and very Matt. He had pictures of his niece Violet everywhere, photos of his sister and of the members of 51, and it smelled of Matt. A distinct smell she had grown to love, heavy and strong, she could only imagine what his bed smelled like.

Oh that thought woke her up, making her blush deeply, thankful that Matt's back was to her, dropping his keys in the bowl. "I can get you something to sleep in if you want..." He had turned to her now, smiling lightly, she wanted to nod but something stopped her, she really didn't want to sleep.

"Actually I'm kinda wired now that I'm awake," she watched as his smile fall, he thought she had changed her mind, thought that she was going to drive home. "Is it ok if I just relax on the couch for a bit? I won't make too much noise..."

Matt sighed, she wasn't leaving; he really didn't want her to leave, "Nah it's ok, we can watch something if you want…" He looked over at her but noticed that she was now staring at his balcony, a small smile on her face. Moving closer to her side, he spoke quietly, "You wanna go outside?" Matt motioned with his head towards the side door, watching her nod quickly.

"No one has been here before. After Hallie and I broke up I moved in here and just kind of made it my own, you know? It's the only real place I've had to myself, after being with Hallie for so long, I needed something of my own." Matt shrugged as he ran his hands over the sidewall, leading Gabby out onto the balcony. He knew she had been at his apartment once before, but this was different, having her there now was something entirely different. "It has an amazing view though..."

Sliding open the balcony door, Gabby stepped out and looked over the horizon, her mouth opening a little as it shined, the street lights causing a soft glow to cover the city. "Matt this is amazing." She couldn't believe the view he had, this was something that you didn't see in Chicago much but it was beautiful.

By the far side of the balcony there was a small set up, a wooden swinging chair with a table by the side, a large plant sitting on the top. It was clear that it was something Matt had made use of, the pillows on the swinging chair looked worn in. Resting her arms against the railing of the balcony, Gabby sighed, sucking in as much air as possible, feeling Matt come by her side, silence taking over them both.

The sun was starting to rise.

Matt glanced down at Gabby by his side, her arms resting against the railing of his balcony, the soft glow of the sun starting to rise over the buildings warming her face, a smile planted on her lips. She seemed content considering the night they'd had, she seemed at peace. He watched as she sighed deeply, her lips moving but he couldn't understand what she had said. Slowly he reached out to touch her cheek, getting her attention, "What did you say?"

Gabby's eyes opened slowly, enjoying the warmth of the sun but also the feeling of his hand against her cheek. She had almost forgotten that he was standing there, too content to be worried about anything at all. She blinked for a moment, before tilting her head towards Matt, her eyes flickering down ever so quickly to his lips before back up to his eyes.

Matt watched as she moved, he could have sworn he saw her glance at his lips, or maybe he was just so desperate to kiss her that he wished she had glanced down at his lips. He swallowed deeply; his stomach was heavy as he looked down at her, Gabby watching what he would do. Slowly Matt reached out and touched her cheek, feeling her turn into his touch, her eyes fluttering closed for a moment.

And in that moment Matt leaned down, he needed to know what her lips felt like, he wanted to know what she felt like in his arms. As his lips touched her, Matt felt her gasp against him, shocked that he was taking that step but part of her glad that he had.

There was so much she wanted to do when he kissed her, she wanted to wrap her arms around his neck, she wanted to pull him close to her but she couldn't, she was melting into the kiss so easily that she couldn't think about anything but his lips on hers. All she could do was bring her hands to his chest, allowing him to hold her close to him, his arms wrapped around her waist as his lips moved against hers, taking her all in.

As they stood on Matt's balcony, the sun rose over them, Matt held Gabby close as they continued to kiss. They were finally in each other's arms.

And that's when I kissed her.

Was it worth the wait? Please let me know :D