Here's another bonus chapter that I wrote on a whim. Hope you enjoy!

Casey hefted the large granite counter onto the striped sink cupboard, Severide on his right helping him lift. They placed it down and stepped back quickly, making sure their fingers got clear so they weren't squished.

"Looks good," Severide commented as he wiped his arm across his brow.

"Told you it would." Casey grinned at his boyfriend. He and Severide had been living together for almost a year now and Casey had been begging the lieutenant to let him remodel his, now their, kitchen. The kitchen counter had been outdated and full of scuff marks, even a few burn spots where the previous tenant had carelessly placed hot pots on top. Severide had always waved him off saying it was fine, but it killed the contractor part of Casey for it to be the first thing he saw each morning as he made his coffee. After much pleading and assurances that Casey would make it look 100 times better than it currently did, Severide had finally caved and let Casey have full control. So far the blonde had completed the cabinets, sanding them down and painting them a lighter colour to brighten the kitchen since the rest of the loft was dark, replaced the sink to a more modern style, one that had a touch feature that Severide had even admitted was cool, and redid the backsplash. All that was left was to put in the new granite countertops, putty the edges, and install the under cabinet lights and he'd be done. Today's mission was the countertops, hence why he had Severide lugging the heavy stone slab up the stairs even though it was one of the hottest days of the summer so far.

"Alright, I'll let you have this one. I'm going out to grab those steaks for dinner. You got the rest handled right?"

"Yup. I just need to cut down the edges so they fit properly and then secure the granite in place and I'm good. I'll probably be done by the time you get back."

Severide walked over and gave him a quick kiss before he grabbed his keys and headed to the door.

"I expect to see an intact counter when I get back!" He called and then he was gone.

Casey chuckled and shook his head as he pushed the granite so it touched the wall. Then he took out his white pencil for marking and began drawing small lines where he needed to make cuts so the granite would fit. When he was done, he tucked the pencil behind his ear and grabbed his hand held wet circular saw as he prepared to cut. He made sure to slip on a mask first. While the wet saw cut down on the dust significantly, he inhaled enough smoke and other things on the job that he always took the utmost precautions when doing his contractor work.

The first cut went smoothly. The saw cut through the granite like it was nothing, sliding with ease in one precise movement. The next few cuts went just as well. Casey was happy with the results. The granite would fit perfectly and he'd be able to rub it in Severide's face that he was right, as always.

The last cut is where the Captain ran into difficulties. For some reason, the granite kept wanting to shift on him and he couldn't line up the saw properly. He knew it was a risk, but since it was the last cut he decided to hold the granite with his left hand toward the end of where he needed to make his cut. With that stabilized, he could cut with his right hand and then be done. Normally he wouldn't even consider that, but he wanted to get this done for his boyfriend before he got home so he could see it finished and the cut he needed to make was only about 6 inches long. The diamond blade was sharp. As long as he kept a firm grip with his right hand, he'd be fine.

Adjusting his stance, Casey made sure he was in a stable position before he turned on the saw and began cutting. Everything was fine for the first few inches. He was going slow, careful to keep his hand out of the way while also ensuring the saw stayed perfectly upright to keep the cut straight. Just as he was nearing the end, the blade caught on something. He wasn't sure what it was, an imperfection in the granite, a crack that had formed in the blade, he'd never know. In that instance, the saw jumped in his hand and he lost control, jutting forward faster than Casey could even blink. His right hand lost its grip and the saw shut off as soon as the button on the handle was released, one of the saw's safety features. Casey's heart thundered as he stared at the saw, now lying at the very back where the counter met the wall. Then pain sent lightning skittering across the nerves on Casey's left hand, travelling all the way up his arm and into his shoulder. Instinctively, he yanked his hand toward his chest and felt a quick wave of dizziness as he saw his hand. The saw had cut a slice into the side of his palm, right under his pinky. Casey couldn't see how deep the cut went under all the blood that was bubbling out of the cut at an alarming rate. He cursed, not only at the pain, but at the fact that he was dripping blood all over the floor.

He raced over to the sink, his right hand gripping the left tightly and held it over the basin so that the blood dripped in there instead of the floor. Casey looked around wildly, a bit panicked, and spotted a dish towel hanging on the cupboard door. He snatched it and pressed it to his left hand, not even bothering to look at the wound. From the amount of blood and how badly it hurt, he knew it was deep.

Keeping the towel pressed tight even though it caused shockwaves of pain to lace through his hand and into his arm, Casey wasn't sure how long he stood there. Suddenly he heard a key in their lock and breathed a sigh of relief. Sev was home.

"Hey Case, I'm back!" Severide announced and Casey heard him tow his boots off, his keys clanking as he placed them on the table by the door. "I got the steaks. I also got-" His boyfriend's voice cut off and then something thunked against the floor, presumably the groceries he had been carrying.

"Shit, is that blood? You bleeding?" He asked as he hurried over to the kitchen, making sure to step over the blood splattered on the tile.

"Jesus, what happened?" Severide immediately took over, his first responder training switching on in an instant. He grabbed Casey's towel wrapped hand and put more pressure on it and Casey hissed.

"Sorry," he said, but didn't loosen his grip. Severide's wide blue eyes met Casey's as he looked his boyfriend over.

"You cut yourself with the saw? Did you lose any fingers? If so we need to go to the hospital now, there's only a certain amount of time until they can reattach those."

Casey raised his bloodied right hand and shook his head, stumbling just a bit when he got dizzy again briefly. The thought sent a wave of nausea through him. He very well could have sawed his fingers off.

"No, my fingers are fine. Cut my palm pretty badly though."

Severide nodded, still staying calm. "Okay, let's go sit on the couch for a second. Your face just went completely white."

Keeping one hand gripped tightly on the towel, Severide helped guide Casey over to the couch with his free hand. As soon as Casey was seated, he gently pushed the blonde's head between his knees, keeping his injured hand raised in the air.

"Slow breaths, Case. We don't need you going into shock. Just relax, slow your heart rate and your breathing."

Casey stayed that way for a few minutes, breathing slowly through his nose and then exhaling through his mouth. After a few cycles, he felt his heart stop hammering in his chest and his breathing got easier. When he felt better, he sat back up, resting his back against the cushions.

"Sorry…" he breathed, heat flaming his neck and cheeks not that he felt better. "I don't know why I freaked out like that. I'm a first responder, I should be able to handle something like this."

Severide quirked an eyebrow. "You don't need to apologize. Anyone would freak out after something like that. It gets the adrenaline going. We see it every day. Just cause we're used to giving aid doesn't mean we can't be affected when it happens to us."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I just feel so stupid. I know better than to get myself into a situation where I can get hurt."

Severide shrugged. "Mistakes happen. All we have to do is learn from them and move on."

Casey shot his boyfriend a small smile but it quickly turned into a wince as Severide adjusted his grip.

"I know it hurts, I'm sorry, but I'm just trying to get the bleeding under control. You okay if I take a look to see how deep it is?"

Casey drew in a deep breath and nodded.

Carefully, Severide pulled back the towel and hissed as he spotted the wound. He rotated Casey's hand slightly to get a better angle and Casey grit his teeth, doing everything he could to not snatch his hand from his boyfriend's grip.

"Okay. All done," Severide said as he put the towel back in place. "It's definitely deep. I didn't see bone but I think the blade got close. You're going to need stitches regardless so it's a hospital trip for us, bud."

He groaned even though he knew that from the second he saw the blood.

"No way around it, Case. I know you hate having to go, but you need to get checked out."

"Yeah, I know."

Severide brought Casey's hand down to the Captain's chest. "Keep pressure on that. I'm going to put the groceries in the fridge quickly and then we can go."

Casey snorted as Severide walked over to the fallen grocery bag and made his way toward the fridge.

"I'm currently bleeding out and you're worried about the steaks?" But Casey smiled, not actually mad.

"First of all," Severide started, face in the fridge as he found a spot to put the steaks, "you're hardly bleeding out. And secondly," he shut the door and spun around, waiving a receipt in the air, "I paid good money for these steaks. They're quality cuts of meat. I'm not letting them go to waste just because you decided to do self-surgery."

Casey stood up from the couch, his hand clutched to his chest, and walked over to where Severide was now at the door.

"You're right. I was prioritizing the wrong things. Thank you for saving those steaks, I don't know what I was thinking."

Severide grinned and leaned forward to give Casey a quick kiss on the lips. "You're welcome."

Casey rolled his eyes and grinned. He knew what Severide ws doing. He was trying to make the situation light, help Casey take his mind off of what happened and stop blaming himself for what was only an accident. Severide knew him too well.

Their couch had never felt so good. Casey sank into the cushions with a content sigh, his newly bandaged hand on his chest. The hospital had done an X-ray and confirmed that Casey had indeed missed the bone with the saw. That was good news, shaving time off his recovery, and so the hospital had only needed to flush the wound, making sure everything was clean, before they stitched him up, bandaged him, and sent him home. He ended up needing twenty two stitches, but the cut had been clean and the doctors were optimistic that he would make a full recovery, his hand no worse for wear except for a new scar. He was also still pleasantly numb and so he was soaking up all the time he had before the throbbing ache settled in again.

"Time for some steaks?" Severide called over the running tap. His boyfriend had just finished cleaning up the blood from the floor and the countertop, something Casey needed to thank him, thoroughly, later for.

Casey's eyes popped open as he sat up quickly, totally forgetting about their planned meal for the night.

"Oh man, that sounds so good right now. I'm starving."

Severide smirked as he opened the fridge. "You're also still a bit high from the morphine they gave you at the hospital, huh?"

Casey grinned. "Yes I am."

Severide laughed. "Alright you just rest and I'll cook these up." He started chopping something by the sink when he paused and turned back to face his boyfriend. "Oh, I totally forgot. Look what else I got!"

Casey watched his boyfriend open the fridge and grab something before he turned around and held it up, a satisfied look on his face.

"Oh my god, is that caramel cheesecake?" Casey's mouth started watering just looking at it.

"Yup. I saw it in the store and thought I'd grab one to celebrate your hard work since it's your favourite. But I think it's warranted now as a celebration that you still have your hand," His boyfriend teased and Casey snorted.

"If it gets me cheesecake, maybe I should hurt myself more often."

"I don't think so. I prefer my boyfriend in one piece, thank you."

"Well, I guess I'll have to find another way to get cheesecake then. Maybe I'll start a new trend of cheesecake worthy emergencies where I don't end up in the hospital."

Severide laughed, his true laugh that Casey didn't get to hear as often as he would like and he found himself laughing along with him.

"Whatever you say, Matty."