It was a packed restaurant but that didn't stop them from committing to date night. It was the least Jay could do; he agreed to do this once a week and this is the first date night out of many. Starting their date off with a movie and now dinner seemed to be simple enough; the movie didn't require them to have conversation but dinner does so Jay is forced to entertain every subject she brings to the table, "So I was thinking of applying to some accounting firms out here…" He didn't mind this one; he's been meaning to broach the subject with her but he didn't want to hurt her feelings.

"If that's something you want then yeah, it's probably a good idea." He plays nonchalant.

Abby leaned back in her seat, the food in front of her growing cold the longer she waits to actually eat it, "I've been just twiddling my thumbs at home, waiting for you and since you work the oddest hours ever, I need something to pass the time. I figured working and making money is the best option," she chuckles softly. Jay laughs and nods because he agrees. He actually thinks that's a great idea; it wouldn't hurt to bring in extra money and the best part of her working is she'll be occupied; she won't have the time to drag her feet around the apartment, to mope around and think about all of his past transgressions.

Abby looked around at all of the occupied tables, the one to her left consisting of an elderly couple and the one to her right consisting of a middle-age coupe with their two teenage children, both sets of people are at different points in their lives, different stages in their family units and if Abby stared hard enough, mind drifting off far enough, she could see herself as the women at both tables, the elderly lady with her husband and the middle-aged woman with her husband and children, it's the future she wants, the future she craves, the only one that she truly deserves and if she's patient enough, she knows that she'll get it. She just has to bide her time.

"I say go for it," Jay lifts his fork and knife to cut into his steak, "you loved your job back in Wisconsin so hopefully the one you get here brings you just as much joy as the one you had back home did. It'd be nice to see you smiling again." Abby reaches her free hand across the table to settle it on top of his free hand, urging him to look up to meet her eyes.

It's a small moment to her, but to her it meant everything. It meant they were getting back to where they began when they first started dating, when he actually put forth effort in courting her.

"You don't know how much it means to me to hear you say things like that. I love you."

He's immediately uncomfortable by the sudden change in atmosphere. Ever since Abby moved in with him, things had been tense, but now he's starting to see it slowly going back to the way things had been in the past. Did he even want it to go back to how things were in Wisconsin?

"If we don't eat, our food will get cold." He doesn't miss the obvious look of disappointment that crosses her face at his obvious display of avoidance. He wasn't comfortably showing his emotion, especially when they're vulnerable emotions and especially when he's in public. She should know this yet the way she always acts surprised tells him otherwise.

Abby pouts, head low, chin pressed to the top of her chest as she silently eats her grilled fish and side salad. What he would do for a burger? But, Abby didn't enjoy the delicacies in life that comes in the form of greasy food. She had chosen this restaurant, and while it was nice and quiet and relaxing, he would prefer a place to eat that was rowdy and had a few televisions lining the walls.

"It's so hard loving you sometimes."

Jay swallows the mashed potatoes before washing it down with a sip of wine, "I never said it was going to be easy," the wine left a bitter taste in his mouth. Abby had ordered a bottle for the table and since he wasn't a wine drinker, he'd trusted her enough to choose for the both of them. For a five-star restaurant, this place surely felt lacking. They don't even serve beer here.

"I've always heard that it takes a good woman to change a man."

"…and I've always heard that you can't change a man unless he wants to change."

She finished off her salad, "Don't you want to change?"

"I haven't found a reason to."

"…maybe for me?"

Jay sits up, grabbing the cloth napkin to dab the corners of his mouth, "If you love me then that means you accept me, flaws and all."

She doesn't know what to say to that. Instead, she focuses back in on her grilled fish and rice, choosing to change the conversation to avoid another broken heart because it was obvious that this topic of choice was gearing up to head in that direction, "Do you want a bite?" She lifts her fork after scooping up some rice and fish.

"Nah, I'm good."

"You should taste it," she extends the fork across the table.

"I'm actually getting fu-" and before he could finish his sentence, she took advantage of his mouth being open and slipped the fork right on inside, "full." He finishes the second she pulls the fork out. He's forced to chew and swallow.

"How is it? It's yummy, isn't it?"

"It's definitely not steak," he jokes. He finishes off the remainder of his steamed mixed vegetables before signaling for the waiter to bring the check, "It was cool though; it wasn't nasty, but I think I'll stick with my meal. Did you want to try it?"

She stares down at his plate, contemplating an answer to his question. There wasn't much left, but it was enough to get a little taste, but she wasn't a big fan of steak and potatoes, "No thanks."

His mouth formed a straight line when he pressed his lips together, nodding his head after hearing her decision. He accepted her answer even though she didn't accept his when she asked earlier.

Jay and Abby finished off the bottle of wine just as the check arrived to the table. She made no move to reach for it, knowing that Jay would have it covered, "You take such good care of me," she says it like it's a compliment and he doesn't know if he wants to take it as one, "I love you."

"…for paying for your food?" He chuckles, sliding his credit card into the check holder.

"That's one reason among many," she finishes off the rest of the food on her plate, scraping up the crumbs with her fork until Jay casts an irritated look in her direction, pleading with his eyes to stop because the sound of her metal fork going across a glass plate was definitely not five star restaurant etiquette, "but my love for you exceeds a number that I can't quantify in a simple conversation," she blushes, reaching both hands across the table to hold his hands, "and I know I tell you this all the time but that just goes to show you how true my love for you is. I'm not rushing you to feel the same but, in the meantime, I don't want you to forget how I feel about you."

He squeezes her hands before withdrawing his from her hold, "I really like you too," He says the words as if they're supposed to be a groundbreaking proposal, or a way to appease her. She wants his heart, she wants his loyalty and his love, not his adolescent way of beating around the bush and pushing the idea of liking her down her throat until he's satisfied that she accepts it.

"I'm confident that'll change."

"You have more confidence about that then I do," he whispers under his breath. But, she hears it yet she doesn't say anything about it. She allows the words to go in one ear and out the other.

"So," she grabs her cloth napkin and dabs it against the corners of her mouth, "I've been browsing on your social media. You only share funny memes. You haven't posted any pictures recently."

"…there's been nothing to post," he retorts, face scrunching up in confusion, "and why are you browsing on my social media? My father and my brother do enough of that." It's one of the reasons why he doesn't post many pictures; he knows that's his family's way of keeping tabs on him especially now that he's moved out of state.

"There are no pictures of us."

"Social media is just for show, Abs. Everyone puts on a show. I'm hardly even on there. You're probably on there more than I am. Do you post pictures on your account?"

"Yes," she exclaims as if he should have known the answer to that question, "I have pictures of you everywhere on my account. My social media friends are a little jealous of how lucky I am, but the point I'm trying to make is I have a bunch of pictures of you on my account, more pictures of you than pictures of me. You don't even have one photo of me. It's like you're ashamed of me."

"I'm not," he whispers and he desperately needs to reclaim this night because it started off so well and he doesn't want to end it on a sour note, "I'm not ashamed of you Abby. I'm nowhere close to being ashamed of you. I just don't think social media has a place in our relationship and as long as we're good with each other, we have nothing to prove to my Facebook friends."

He made it sound so good, so obviously simple. And she accepted his response without further argument, and Jay knows her so he knows the reason why. She hates arguing or disagreeing with him out of fear of losing him. He wouldn't break up with her over one little, petty argument but she would never know that because she's too afraid of taking the chance. If any argument broke out, she found a way to either make herself to blame, give him the benefit of the doubt, agree with every point he makes even if it's about her or a combination of all three.

She's settling; he is too. They are not a good fit for each other yet he's too much of a coward to do anything about it. She's not the same person that he first met and the argument could be made that neither is he. It's expected for someone to grow and change with the times as long as the change is for the better, Abby's change seems to be slowly going downhill, between the snooping through his phone and email -which fortunately stopped- now he finds out she's snooping on his social media accounts. He doesn't even know how she got his password to login.

"Let's uh, let's talk about something else," he's tempted to just deactivate his accounts but he doesn't want to lose the only source of communication he has with old friends and former colleagues. For all the negative that comes out of social media, it does have its positives too.

The waiter returns to take the check holder and soon enough he disappears to scan Jay's card, leaving the couple to the rest of their awkward dinner conversation. Abby grabs her clutch purse and sets it in her lap before she reaches for her glass to finish off the rest of her wine, "So, as we wait, tell me something interesting, a story maybe, something that'll amaze me."

Her words are reminiscent of their first date.

She wants that mood, that feeling to come back and surround them, embrace them in their efforts of starting over and going slow, "Um, let's see," he rubs his chin in thought, "oh, I have one," he's grateful for the subject change; he'd rather tell stories than talk about his feelings, "this should be a pretty interesting story. We just closed a case we've been working on for a few weeks, a string of robberies near Hyde Park and so after many long nights we finally identified a suspect and we geared up to go get him. Anyway," he sits up and takes the check holder when the waiter comes back, "my sergeant splits us up and me and my partner are assigned to enter through the back of the house," he multitasks by resuming the story while adding a tip to the check, "we rush in, guns drawn ready for battle and this guy, this man that's been robbing and burglarizing homes is running, ass naked," he chuckles as he remembers that night -it was a long night, "he's running room to room, down the stairs, trying to get away from us and Ruzek, he's another detective, tackles him down but the way they fell had Ruzek's face pressed against his chest. My partner took a photo so for Adam's birthday we're going to get it printed out on a cake."

Abby's laughing, genuinely laughing and Jay is too. It's not forced or fake, it's true and real and it's been a longtime coming. She wipes below her eyes, "Does he know about this?"

"Who? Adam?" Abby nods and Jay shakes his head, "No, he has no idea about the picture or what we're planning to do with it, but if you knew Adam and the type of guy he is, then you'd know how this is the perfect way to get at him." Abby wants to know his coworkers, she's said that to him more times than she can count, and even though now is another opportunity for her to bring it up, she doesn't. She's too in the moment. Even as they grab their jackets, hold hands and walk out of the restaurant, she doesn't bring it up, choosing instead to pick her battles and allowing this not to be one of them.

It's been a long time, longer than he can remember since he's laughed with her.

It's felt like forever since he's had an actual good, decent conversation with her.

As a cold breeze blows through the night, she tightens her grip on his hand as she brings her body in closer to wrap her opposite arm around his, "When is Ruzek's birthday?" The name of his friend sounds so weird rolling off of her tongue considering that she doesn't know him and has never spoke his name before but he lets it go, figuring that he'll grow to get used to it.

"I'm not sure," he lies, shrugging his shoulders, "My partner is going to be in charge of the cake and everything. I'm just going to show up." He purposefully doesn't tell her because he doesn't want her to invite herself and show up. It's not like it's going to be some big party, it's just going to be at work during their lunch break, and his birthday isn't until March, that's months away. It's enough time into the future that Ruzek will hopefully forget about the naked man and the tackle only to be suddenly reminded by the picture of it printed out in icing on a large birthday cake.

Moving closer to their parked car, he feels her hand caress his before her opposite arm tightens around his arm, pulling him to a stop and forcing him to look down at her, "I'm not ready to go home just yet. Maybe we can go for a little walk and you can tell me more stories?"

"It's freezing out here." It's almost winter and the Chicago nights seem to be colder than past years, "If we stay out here any longer, we'll catch our deaths."

"…just a walk down the block and back," she can never take no for an answer.

"It's getting late Abs and I've been up since five in the morning."

Abby shakes her head, obviously refusing to accept his excuse, "It won't even take long. We're already out here, we might as well just walk to that corner," she points off into the distance, "and then walk back, head home and I won't bother you for the rest of the night." Their relationship has come to this, it's come to promises of him doing something for her with the benefit of being reassured that she'll give him some space later. Regardless of whether or not that's healthy or toxic in a relationship, he agrees anyway, "Alright, just to that corner and then back."

There seems to be a pep in her step, most likely from the burst of energy she received after getting her way. It's typical Abby. She's a woman that will poke and poke until you give in because she seems incapable of hearing and accepting the answer no, and when it's given -mostly from Jay- and he doesn't renege on it, she cries or pouts or starts an argument. Her parents -even though he's never met them or asked her about them- did her a disservice.

"Do you have any new cases?"

"…can't really talk about them if I do," he replies, brushing off her question.

"Are you liking your job more now?"

"I've always liked the job, it's the people that I really didn't like."

"Are you liking the people more now?"

Jay shrugs his shoulders, "I guess…" he doesn't sound interested in having this conversation but she doesn't seem to pick up on his obvious discomfort. He only has himself to blame since he's not being straight up with her.

"Is your boss still-"

"Abs," he cuts her off as he walks alongside her, his hands now tucked into his coat pocket to battle the chill in the air, "I'd rather not talk about Hank Voight after hours."

It's the first time she heard his boss's name; usually he just refers to him as the sergeant, but it's nice to know that she's chipping away at the wall he constantly has around him.

"We can change the conversation then."

He nods and provides her with a small smile that doesn't reach his eyes, "Yeah, that'd be for the best." He might be off for the weekend but he's back to work on Monday and he does not want to spend his hours off thinking or talking about his boss. Telling one interesting story about work is different than delving into the relational dynamics of his career.

For less than a minute, they walk in silence. His hands remain tucked in his jacket pockets as hers interlocked and dangle in front of her. She hates awkward silence; he doesn't mind it as much. She kicks a pebble and watches as if flies across the sidewalk, "Jay," and the silence that he loved so much was now broken after only a few charitable seconds, "I'm really glad we did this."

"Me too," he replies. When they reach the pebble she kicked, he takes a swing at it, but instead of it going further up the sidewalk, it lands in the street.

"And I know I always mention my broken heart, and you're probably tired of hearing about it-"

"Abs," he attempts to interject but she shakes her head and reaches for his hand, pulling one out of his jacket pocket in order to intertwine her fingers with it.

"Don't. I know what you're going to say," and when his brow raises, insinuating that he doesn't fully believe that she knows where he was going with his comment, she takes the challenge, "you were going to say that it's nothing wrong with me talking about my broken heart and that even if you're tired of hearing about it, it's what you deserve after playing a hand in breaking it," he nods because she was right, "but I cut you off because what you said wasn't needed. I know it's going to take more than one date night to fix it, but I do feel like my heart is on the mend. I love that you're trying, you're doing this to make me happy. I wanted to say that even though you broke my heart, I love and appreciate you for putting forth efforts to help try to mend it. Thank you for that."

Jay doesn't know how to respond or react. Do you thank the person who is trying to help mend your heart when they're the ones that broke it? It seems a little backwards. It's a bit convoluted.

He puts on a smile, a fake one that he seems to master. They say practice makes perfect and ever since Abby moved to Chicago, he's been practicing the art of the fake smile a lot. And it's reassuring to know that he's improved because by the way she's looking at him, staring at the side of his face as they turn around and head back to the car, lets him know that she can't tell the difference, she's none the wiser of his complicated thoughts and feelings. But, even though he's not happy, it does provide him with some type of relief and positive emotion to know that she's healing, she's becoming whole again despite his treachery.