A/N: Hi! Happy Halloween! Thank you all so much for all your kind words when I came back last week :) I'm super excited to share the rest of this story with you. I hope you enjoy!

Hailey may have taken advantage of Jay's first-aid skills since the beginning of their relationship. He was the one who rubbed her neck and put band-aids on her and just generally took care of her when she stumbled, so when she cut her leg while shaving and her head started spinning, she knew where she needed to go.

Stepping out of the bathroom with her robe around her, she double checked that Vanessa was, in fact, still at Kevin's apartment before running across the hall. Her hand was shaking as she pulled on the doorknob and knocked quickly.

"Jay!" she said through the door, "Jay, it's me. I'm in trouble. Please."

The door shot open, but instead of her boyfriend on the other side, Mouse stood in his own pajamas, rubbing sleep from his face.

"Who's chasing you?" he asked.

Hailey shakily breathed in and said, "Where's Jay?"

"Work," Mouse answered. He yawned and stepped forward to glance up and down the hallway. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Hailey swallowed and glanced down at the blood pooling around her foot.

Mouse followed her gaze then swore under his breath. Grabbing Hailey's arm, he pulled her inside and straight to one of the recliners.

"Work?" she asked in a lame attempt at getting her mind off of the stinging sensation radiating from her shin.

"Yeah, he grabbed an overtime shift," Mouse said, kneeling down to look at her leg. "What the hell?" he continued, "Were you trying to amputate yourself?"

"Obviously not," Hailey gritted through her teeth.

Mouse nodded and hurried to the bathroom.

While she listened to him rustle around for whatever he was looking for, she tried thinking back to her phone and if Jay had texted her. She couldn't remember even seeing a notification, so she shrugged it off and leaned her head back.

"Okay," Mouse said quietly upon his return. He knelt in front of her and set her foot on his leg to begin cleaning the blood off her skin.

Hailey watched him silently work. Every once in a while, she'd wince from slight burn shooting through her, but Mouse was generally rather careful. She fanned herself from the sweat that was beginning to form on her forehead. The room was still slightly spinning, and all she wanted was a cold glass of water.

"That should stay," Mouse eventually said once he'd wrapped gauze around her leg. Glancing up at her, he asked, "You good?"

"Um, sure, yeah, thanks," she replied softly. She set her foot back on the ground and said, "I can clean-"

"Don't worry about it," Mouse replied, already rubbing the towel over the hardwood floor where Hailey's blood had dripped.

She nodded without fighting him and got up to make her way into the kitchen. Shocked, Mouse's gaze followed her as she pulled out a water bottle and struggled to get it open. Once she was guzzling the water, getting more on her robe than in her mouth, she closed her eyes and leaned against the counter.

"Are you really okay?" Mouse asked.

When she blinked, the room was still spinning, so she gave in and shook her head. "Don't really like…all that blood made me woozy," she admitted.

"All right, hey, let's get you to bed then and maybe some juice," Mouse said, shooting forward to grab her arm.

"Not your bed," Hailey argued.

"No, no, I know," Mouse laughed as he brought her to Jay's room, "I'll put you in here. You know this room, right?"

Hailey rolled her eyes, but happily got on the bed.

"I'll get you some orange juice," Mouse said on his way back out the door.

Hailey sighed and put her head in her hands as she tried to steady her breathing. Wishing she had her phone to call Jay, she settled on lying back on his pillows. This way, she could breathe him in and attempt to relax as if he was right there with her.

She'd gotten used to his bed. He had more blankets than her, but she had more pillows. In a way, it evened out. They evened each other out making them the seemingly perfect match.

She just wished he was there right now.

"Think you can sit up, or do I need a straw?"

Hailey peeked an eye out from behind her hand and shook her head. As Mouse opened his mouth to ask for clarification, she sat up and put a hand out. Taking the glass of juice, she hummed quietly as she took a long sip.

"All right, I'm gonna text Jay," Mouse mumbled and lightly squeezed her shoulder, "He'll want-"

"No," Hailey gasped out, "No. I'm fine. Let him do the overtime." She set the glass on the small, overcrowded side table.

Mouse raised an eyebrow and said, "He'll want to know."

Hailey shook her head and repeated, "I'm fine."

"If you were my girlfriend-"

"Well, I'm not. I'm Jay's and-"

She stopped.

Mouse smiled at her. He actually smiled at that.

"What?" she breathed.

Mouse chuckled, shaking his head on his way to sit at the end of the mattress near her feet. "You said your his," he said.

Hailey shrugged.

Clearing his throat, Mouse said, "His ex never said that. I never remember her saying she was his girlfriend. It was always 'Erin, Jay's my boyfriend, nice to meet you,' not 'Erin, I'm his girlfriend.' I used to ask if it'd bother him that she never really admitted their relationship was a two-way thing, and he'd tell me to shut up. Then, when she left and he turned off for a while, he eventually admitted that it did bother him. He said he never wanted to own her, but he would have liked to be acknowledged more. You acknowledge him, Hailey, and, as his friend, that makes me really happy."

It broke her heart.

She absolutely did not think that Jay owned her or that he ever would no matter where their relationship went, but she liked thinking she was his like he was hers. They were this pair - two halves of a whole - and that was okay. He was teaching her that, and she was happily learning it.

It all made her want to say she was his girlfriend even more than she had before.

"Well, thank you for telling me," she said softly, "I promise to keep that mind and work to be better than her."

Mouse smiled slightly and leaned closer to whisper, "Between you and me, everyone thinks you are better."

Hailey laughed and looked down at her hands. "Thanks," she said.

Mouse hummed then stood up. "Sleep it off, okay? I'll just text Jay that you're hanging out here. You can tell him the details when he gets home. Promise."

"You're a good friend," Hailey replied, a slight tease in her voice.

Mouse winked then walked out of the room leaving Hailey to her thoughts.

Taking a deep breath, she settled down in the blankets and closed her eyes. She had spent the day before down in the laundry room with Jay, so she knew they were clean. His bed was always so put together; hers would be tight for about three days after washing the sheets, but his was consistently perfect like in a hotel room. She hadn't necessarily expected it, but after looking in his nearly immaculate closet, she wasn't surprised.

She also wasn't surprised to always find Jay's hand on her when they fell asleep together. She'd wake up to it on her hip or up in her hair, and she loved it. He made her feel warm and protected even in the darkness of their bedrooms. It was what she was thinking of when she finally fell asleep.

And what she felt the second her eyes opened.

"Hey," Jay whispered as he brushed his fingers through her nearly dry hair, "Mouse said you weren't feeling great."

Hailey yawned into her hand and shrugged, sitting up enough to rest her head on his thigh. "When'd you get home? You didn't run here the second he texted you, right?" she asked.

"I just got home," he answered, "But Mouse texted me a few hours ago that you were gonna be here for a bit. He said he had it covered, but maybe-"

"No, no, it's okay," Hailey interrupted quickly, "I just slept the whole time."

Jay raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he continued playing with her hair.

"It was just a cut," she continued to explain, "And I'd had a hard time sleeping last night, plus I hadn't eaten anything yet, so I felt a little weird looking at all the blood."

"You didn't pass out, though, right?" Jay asked.

"No, I promise," Hailey said.

Jay nodded and brushed the back of his finger down her nose.

Closing her eyes, Hailey asked, "How was work?"

"Fine," Jay answered, "My boss's daughter was sick, so I had to cover her shift."

Hailey hummed and said, "How old is she?"

"Like…27 or 28."

Hailey's eyes shot open and she asked, "What?"

Jay nodded and said, "She works there. It's a family thing. My boss, Heidi, started the office with her brother, Jack. Heidi's daughter, Jessica, is the one who called off, but Jack's two kids, Stephen and Brennen, work there too. I like all of them."

"I had no idea," Hailey said softly.

Jay shrugged and let his hand drift down her side. "Hasn't come up," he said, "It's okay."

Hailey frowned slightly and breathed, "Okay." Staring up at him, she took in his black scrubs and tired eyes and felt bad for not having asked before. She didn't want him to think she didn't care or that his job didn't matter.

Sitting up slowly, she put a hand on his leg and said, "Just a short shift then? You don't need to go back in?"

"Correct," Jay answered before kissing Hailey's forehead, "You're sure you're okay? You slept awhile."

"Yeah, of course," she replied softly, "I'm sure I just had low sugar and then all that blood coming down my leg was too much."

Jay shot her a small smile and nodded. His fingers returned to lightly running through her hair as he breathed, "That's good because finding you naked in my bed was certainly a welcome surprise."

Hailey laughed and shook her head before lightly tugging at the neckline of his shirt. "And this…your scrubs…also kind of hot," she said.

"Kind of?" he lightly teased, "I feel like they make me super hot."

"Oh, don't get ahead of yourself now," Hailey laughed on her way to kiss him.

He smiled against her lips then said, "Real quick, before we get started-"

"Come on," Hailey teasingly groaned.

"I'll get there in a second," Jay said through his laugh. He squeezed her thigh then said, "Our office has season tickets to Cubs games-" he paused to roll his eyes much to Hailey's enjoyment "-and as a thank you for running in last minute this morning, Heidi said I could have them for today. Do you think everyone wants to go tonight? There are eight tickets. I know it's last minute, but it could be fun."

"I think that'd be a lot of fun," Hailey easily answered, "I know Adam, Mouse, and Kevin would enjoy it, and Vanessa, Kim, and I would also enjoy looking at all the players."

"Okay," Jay laughed and pushed her down on the mattress to roll on top of her, "You're funny, Upton."

"I know," she laughed and set her hand on the side of his face, "I should be a comedian."

Jay hummed and kissed her slowly. "Should I text them first?" he asked.

"Do you really think they all have plans tonight that don't already include each other?" Hailey countered.

Jay smirked and shook his head. Kissing down her throat, he said, "I can text them in ten."

"Ten?" Hailey repeated and pushed his shoulders so he sat up slightly, "I want more than ten minutes."

"I will give you more than ten minutes," Jay chuckled and pulled his shirt off, "This is just Round One. We'll go for a second and third after the text."

Hailey rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but laugh as Jay returned to kissing down her throat while untying her robe. She rubbed her hands over his back and breathed, "I'm gonna need food too."

Jay snorted quietly and said, "Now who's the one asking for sex to go fast?"

Hailey laughed and tipped her head back. Hooking her leg over his hip, she said, "I'm just saying…three times might be pushing it."

"Oh, it'll be worth it," Jay whispered in her ear before slipping his hand around her waist.

She moaned softly as his thumb brushed along her hip bone and settled on quieting down. Tracing her fingers down his spine, she fluttered her eyes close when he kissed under her ear.

Her robe fell away and was tossed to the side with his pants, and it didn't even matter that Mouse was definitely in the next room. She wanted this.

It may have been her ulterior motive this morning when running across the hall anyways.

The late night Cubs game wasn't too crowded, but their seats were rather high.

"They're meant for office outings or when their family all wants to hang out, they're not crazy expensive," Jay explained as everyone followed him up the stairs.

"And we really can't just steal someone else's seats?" Vanessa mumbled under her breath.

Everyone had happily agreed to go to the free baseball game that night. They took a bus together downtown because Adam wanted to go out for drinks after, and it sounded like the perfect way to spend the night. Hailey loved a night spent in the apartment with her friends, but she also missed being in school and going out to clubs or bars occasionally. Now that her 'real' life was starting, it seemed to have slowed down - she figured a baseball game with the promise of drinks after was the perfect way to pick it back up.

"We could celebrate a win," Adam had explained, "Or we can drown in our sorrows," which, to Hailey, felt like the perfect call-back to being in school and looking for an excuse to go out on a Tuesday night.

"It's a Cubs game," Kim had said.

Adam shrugged and took a swig of his beer that he'd grabbed out to pre-game before having launched into a story about the last baseball game he'd gone to.

It was all also something Hailey was happily looking forward to. She'd been wanting to go to a baseball game with Jay since they watched their first game together, and now they were dating while going to one after spending the entire afternoon tangled up in his bed together before and after sharing a couple slices of cold, leftover pizza. Yes, their friends were there, but their whole relationship had been built because of their friends, so it seemed to fit just fine.

"All right," Jay announced once they reached their rows, "First four here, then four in the row above too."

Vanessa led the way for Kevin, Kim, and Adam while Hailey, Jay, and Mouse sat in the row in front of them.

"No funny business back there," Mouse said, turning around to smirk at his friends.

"We need to find you a girl," Kevin countered, "You're just jealous."

"Am not," Mouse said.

"A bit," Jay breathed and put his arm around Hailey's shoulder.

"Be nice," Hailey said quietly with a glance toward Mouse.

"Hey, it's fine," Mouse said, "I'll get a girl when I get a girl. It's not like it's been months since I've had sex." He smirked toward Kevin then joked, "What's it been? Three…four…five months before Ness?"

Kevin shot him his middle finger then leaned back in his chair.

Jay lightly punched Mouse's arm and whispered, "Dude."

"He started it," Mouse mumbled.

Hailey glanced over her shoulder and gave Vanessa a small smile.

"It's okay," Vanessa whispered. She smiled back and shrugged before setting a hand on Kevin's thigh.

"When's the game start?" Kim asked, "I want a hotdog."

"Seriously?" Hailey asked, turning further in her seat, "That sounds so gross to me right now."

"What's wrong with hotdogs?" Adam asked.

"They're squished meat," Hailey said, scrunching up her nose.

Jay laughed at her and lightly tugged her ponytail. "You want nachos instead?" he asked.

"Now that sounds really good," Hailey agreed, "Jalapenos too."

"Okay," Jay said and stood up, "Anyone else want to come too?"

"Yeah, nachos and hotdogs sound delicious," Kevin said, standing as well with Adam and Mouse. The four of them walked off toward the food stands leaving the girls on their own.

Hailey spun completely in her seat and announced, "Four times this morning. Well, I got four, Jay had two."

Kim's eyes widened and she hissed, "Are you serious?"

Hailey smirked and nodded.

"Lucky," Vanessa said quietly. She glanced down the stairs at the guys' retreating backs then leaned forward and said, "We haven't, like, actually slept together yet. Is that weird? I thought we'd for sure do it by now, but clothes stay mostly on the whole time. It's good, don't get me wrong, but...I don't know..."

"It's only been a couple weeks, right?" Kim asked, "I think that's fine."

Hailey nodded and said, "Yeah, no rush."

"Okay," Vanessa said, rolling her eyes, "Like you two didn't sleep with them on your first dates."

Kim's jaw dropped slightly before she pulled herself together and said, "It was actually the second for your information."

Hailey blushed and said softly, "Sorry."

Vanessa waved her off and said, "It's fine. I get it, maybe he's just waiting or whatever, but…I don't know. It's different. We're getting along just fine, and we're definitely attracted to each other. I think I just expected more. Then again, maybe this is just what being an adult is like."

"You're barely an adult," Hailey said with a soft laugh, earning a big eye roll and the smallest of smirks from Vanessa.

Kim ignored her and squeezed Vanessa's arm before saying, "If it helps, Adam and I haven't had sex in three days."

Vanessa blinked and plainly stated, "It doesn't."

Hailey couldn't help but really laugh just to try and cover it with a cough.

Kim blushed and looked down.

"Anyways," Vanessa said slowly, "Hailey, Mouse said you almost passed out this morning."

Hailey pursed her lips then said, "Yeah. I cut myself shaving, so-"

"Seriously?" Vanessa asked, a light laugh teasing in her voice, "You need to get better at that. You always get queasy when you cut yourself."

"It's been a while since it happened," Hailey defended, "So it's not a big deal."

"I think it is," Kim argued, "You're going to get hurt."

"It was fine," Hailey said and waved her hand, "Mouse bandaged me up and then Jay took care of me the rest of the day. It all worked out."

"Took care of," Vanessa said with a smirk then added, "You and your boyfriend are gross; we all just heard what you said about this morning."

"We are not gross," Hailey said through a laugh, "I just really like him. He's good."

"In bed," Kim finished for her. She smiled as Hailey laughed again while blushing, then said, "All jokes aside, we're happy you're happy. You two might be gross, but you're also cute."

"And you of all people deserve that," Vanessa said, "We like seeing someone care about you."

Hailey blushed again and looked down at her hands. "Thanks," she said softly, "It is nice. I've been really enjoying spending so much time with him. Yes, he's good in bed, but he's also a really good person. His family means a lot to him and he has morals and he is a really good friend to the guys and you two…he's just good, and I can't believe he's mine."

Both Vanessa and Kim smiled at her and again told her how happy they were for her before she shifted the conversation to their own days. Not long after, the guys were filing back into their seats, all holding enough beer and food for them all.

"Nachos and beer for my princess," Jay said with a wink as he passed Hailey her food.

"My hero," she laughed, "Thank you. It looks delicious."

"Don't drink all the beer just yet," Mouse said, "We're planning on racing during the National Anthem to see who can finish first when she sings the brave part."

Kim raised an eyebrow and said, "Seriously?"

"You don't have to play," Adam said.

Kim scoffed, but still laughed softly and took a bite of her hotdog.

Hailey dipped a chip in cheese and held it out for Jay. "Want some?" she asked.

"Thanks," he said before biting it out of her hand. He offered her his hotdog, but then took a bite of that as well when she turned him down. "You sure you're okay?" he asked once he swallowed.

"Of course," she replied. Swirling a chip around in her cheese, she said, "Like I said, hotdogs are just kind of grossing me out right now."

Jay hummed and took another bite. "Shame," he said through his mouthful.

Hailey smiled at him and shook her head. "You're too much," she said softly.

"Maybe for the normal person," Jay replied, "But I think I'm perfect for you."

Hailey laughed and lightly shoved his arm. "Shut up," she said.

Though he really didn't have to, she was beginning to think he was exactly right.

Hailey still wasn't one for baseball, but she was beginning to warm up more to the sport. Having her boyfriend's arm wrapped around her as she watched the game helped, as long as having all her friends nearby. She was well aware that they weren't all watching the game as attentively as maybe they should have been, but they were having a good time and that's all that should have mattered.

Kevin won their race of finishing his beer during the National Anthem, and since Jay lost, he went to buy a beer for everyone else with Adam at his side during the second inning. During that time, Mouse reenacted Hailey showing up at his door with blood running down her leg and swore he almost had to amputate it with a kitchen knife. Hailey was glad Jay wasn't there to hear because she knew it would have freaked him out.

Adam and Jay brought back a mix of cotton candy, popcorn, and candied almonds, swearing they had no choice based on the advertising. Besides the popcorn, it was all food Hailey had never had before, and it was delicious. When she was younger, her parents were insistent whenever they went anywhere that they didn't need snacks. In hand, it partly had to do with not having a ton of extra money lying around, but it was also disappointing to be the only one of her friends who would show up at high school football games without a little bit of cash for a snack. She got so used to not eating the standard junkfood at sporting events that she never even bothered to buy it for herself when she could in college.

And then Jay passed her the cotton candy unknowingly and she immediately felt a surge of happiness run through her. It was just so sweet and soft, and she loved how it melted in her mouth. She hated that she'd never had it before.

"Can I have another piece?" Jay asked a while later without looking away from the game.

Hailey's hand hesitated on its way to grab the last piece from the bottom of the bag. She weakly laughed before grabbing it and passing it over to him.

Jay accepted it then glanced down once he realized how small it felt. He raised an eyebrow and looked over at her. "Really?" he asked, "See, now I know you're definitely not going to feel good. Did you eat that whole bag?"

"Not…not the whole thing," she said and bit her lip, "Sorry. I'll go buy you more."

Jay stared at her with a smile on his face then chuckled and shook his head. "You're good," he said, "Must be your favorite, huh?"

Hailey blushed and wiped her hands on her shorts. "Um," she began quietly, "I…I've just never had it before."

Jay's eyes widened and Hailey could see his jaw freeze so that the cotton candy on his tongue had to have simply melted without even touching his teeth. "You've never had it?" he repeated.

Hailey's cheeks burned more and she nodded.

"You…wow. I had no idea," Jay said, "I-I'm sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for," Hailey said softly, "Just a different way of growing up."

"Your parents health nuts or something?"

Both Hailey and Jay looked over at Mouse watching the game, but also apparently listening in on the conversation.

If Hailey thought she'd been embarrassed before, she was certainly embarrassed now. Telling Jay about her family and how she'd grown up had been one thing – she'd trusted him from the moment she met him. Mouse…she trusted Mouse, yes, but he was also just a friend. She wasn't ready to break those walls down just yet - it took her just over a year of friendship before even spilling mostly everything to Kim and Vanessa.

"Uh, yeah," she answered with a weak laugh, "Always watching what we ate, you know. Running a restaurant made them obsessed with food."

Mouse hummed and nodded while turning back toward the game.

Jay pulled Hailey closer and kissed her temple. "You're amazing," he whispered in her ear, "My beautiful girlfriend, inside and out."

Hailey bit her lip over a slight smile and looked up at him. He winked and brushed his thumb over her cheek then tossed his arm over her shoulder. Taking a deep breath, she settled into his side and set a hand on his thigh.

Jay smiled down at her and squeezed her shoulder lightly.

Hailey glanced back at her friends, and, upon noticing they weren't staring at her, leaned up to whisper back, "And my boyfriend is pretty amazing too. Thank you."

If possible, Jay's smile nearly broke his face in two. "Yeah?" he breathed.

Hailey laughed softly and nodded. "Handsome too," she added.

"Sounds like a great guy," Jay teased.

Hailey laughed again and said, "Yeah, I'd agree with that."

Jay chuckled and kissed her head. "I'm glad we did this," he said.

Hailey hummed and raised an eyebrow. "Came to the game?" she asked.

Jay shook his head and said, "No. Dating. This. Like…became us. I'm glad we did it. I told you it'd work out."

Hailey laughed and pinched his thigh lightly. "It's only been a couple weeks, you might get sick of me," she said, "But you're right. It feels right and…I really do like you. A lot."

Jay smiled and leaned down to kiss her quickly. "I'll never get sick of you," he whispered in her ear.

"Hey, love birds," Vanessa snapped and kicked the back of Jay's chair, "You two are both wonderful people, but this kissy thing in public is gonna need to stop. You're not even drunk."

"Can it at least wait until the bar?" Kevin asked.

Jay smirked and sent Hailey another wink before turning fully in his chair to say, "I'm not even sorry."

Hailey snorted a laugh and shook her head.

"Of course," Vanessa breathed, rolling her eyes. Though a second later, she met Hailey's gaze and smiled, shaking her head.

'I know,' Hailey mouthed.

Vanessa blew her a kiss then laughed and turned to Kevin to ask him about the game. It satisfied Hailey enough to know that she'd meant it – maybe Vanessa was struggling to figure out her own relationship, but she was at least supportive of what Hailey had herself.

Even when the kiss cam spun around the stadium twenty minutes later, landed on Jay and Hailey, and let them do their 'kissy thing' as public as it could possibly get.

It was really all Hailey needed.

Then again, she also needed a tequila shot after the game.

Not because she was sad or celebrating like Adam had suggested early on, but because she lost a bet with Jay on the final outcome. She was convinced the Cubs were going to win, and Jay's hatred toward them refused to believe that; whoever lost the bet needed to start off their bar night with a tequila shot from the cheapest bottle they could get.

So she sat laughing on a barstool as Jay set a small glass in front of her.

"To my dearest girlfriend who wrongly believes in the Cubs," he announced to their friends, "Take the shot."

She picked it up and asked, "Do you have a lime?"

"Jay, put it in your mouth," Kim butt in.

Everyone turned to look at her and Jay said, "Excuse me?"

"Put the lime in your mouth," she repeated, "Hailey can-"

"No," Adam interrupted, "Hailey cannot."

"Oh, come on," Kim sighed, "You're no fun."

Jay smirked and looked at Hailey, raising an eyebrow and holding out the lime.

"Funny, but maybe not tonight," she answered, grabbing the lime from him. She took a deep breath before drinking the tequila quickly and shoving the lime in her mouth.

"Hot," Jay chuckled.

Hailey coughed slightly and set the lime rind in her empty glass. "Wow," she said.

"Good?" Jay asked.

"Sure," Hailey replied then jumped off the stool, "What would you like to drink?"

"Uh, just a whiskey," he answered.

"Just a whiskey," Kevin scoffed, laughing softly, "Okay."

Hailey smiled at Jay and rubbed his side before walking around him to order the drinks.

As she waited for their whiskeys, she kept her eyes on him and smiled more when he climbed onto the bar stool she'd just abandoned. The baseball game had certainly been fun even if their friends weren't super into their PDA.

She was almost surprised she'd been so touchy-feely with him anyways. That had never been something she'd done in the past with old boyfriends. She hadn't wanted to be so vulnerable in front of her friends. Sure, they'd seen her hug or occasionally kiss Garrett or any of her other boyfriends, but to the extent that she touched Jay? Never.

Part of her wondered where it came from, and yet all she could think of was the trust she had in Jay. She knew he wasn't going to push her away or deny her. She knew he liked touching her just as much. She felt safe and secure when around him, so it made sense in her eyes that she would be so willing to have such an open relationship with him.

Plus, she didn't want to hide her feelings. She felt so happy that keeping that bottled up felt plain wrong. She was proud of herself and wanted to flaunt her personal growth.

She was careful, though, to keep in mind that Jay hadn't been the one to make her a better or stronger person; he was just the result of her own decisions and new outlook. Had she not accepted her past and realized that she was capable of feeling appreciated and wanted, she didn't think she would have kissed Jay at Allie's wedding. She knew she wouldn't have. Her personal growth led her to Jay, and he proved to be the perfect reward.

Finally bringing the drinks back to Jay and her friends, she asked, "Adam, do we do a cheers if we're mourning a loss?"

Adam chuckled and said, "Sure. Let's say…here's to free baseball tickets to what was, admittedly, a good game of baseball even if the Cubs lost."

"That was freakishly long," Mouse mumbled before taking a sip of beer.

"That's what I told Adam the night we first slept together," Kim joked.

Mouse choked on his drink and looked at her.

Jay whistled as the others laughed. "The mouth on Burgess," he said.

She jokingly bowed and said, "Thank you, thank you. I'm-"

A phone rang and cut her off, and everyone started looking around to see where it was coming from.

Jay, though, seemed to know right away it was his phone as he nearly spilled his drink while setting it on the counter to reach into his pocket. "Dad," he said quickly once he had his phone to his ear. Automatically, he started pulling his wallet out and rifling for cash.

Everyone stayed still as he began nodding and stammering a reply.

"Yeah…yeah, I'll-I'll be right there. I'm coming," he said before ending the call and throwing two twenty dollar bills on the bar.

"Hey, what's going on?" Kevin said, grabbing at the money and pushing it back in Jay's hand only to be pushed right back.

"Just…just use it," he said shakily, "I-I need to go."

"Jay," Hailey said under her breath and set a hand on his chest before he could walk away from them, "Jay, talk to me."

His eyes were wild as he seemed to struggle to meet her gaze. Finally, he said, "My mom collapsed."

"Oh my god," Kim breathed and set her drink down.

"Jay," Mouse said, taking a step closer to him.

"I'm going," Jay said to Hailey, "I-I need-"

"I'll go with you," she interrupted.

Jay shook his head and set a hand on her arm. "No. No, I…I need to go. I just…it's my dad and Will. Just us right now. I'm going."

"Man, how're you going to get there?" Kevin asked, "We took a bus to the game and walked from there."

"There's gonna be another bus, right?" Jay asked, "The bus stop is a couple blocks down. I'm going."

"Jay," Hailey said again, "You can't-"

"It's my mom," he said weakly, "I need to go right now. I'll-I'll keep you updated, okay? I promise."

Before she could argue again, he kissed her forehead and ran out of the bar, a few of his loose dollars falling to the ground in his wake.

Hailey felt her heart shatter right there.

It was exactly what his mom had warned her about, but right now…

She shakily bent down to pick up his money before looking at her friends and quietly asking, "Can we go home?"

A/N: Thoughts? And ps! Have fun and be safe if you're going out tonight!