Days passed with an uncomfortable silence between the Halstead brothers. Will threw himself into his work, working long hours and avoiding any mention of Jay or the Intelligence Unit. The rift between them felt insurmountable, each waiting for the other to break the silence first.
One morning, however, Will woke up feeling unusually fatigued. His head throbbed with a persistent ache, and his body felt like lead as he dragged himself through rounds and consultations. Ignoring the signs of illness, he dismissed them as stress-induced symptoms, refusing to admit weakness in front of his colleagues or himself.
But as the day progressed, Will's condition deteriorated rapidly. By the time his shift ended, he could barely stand without swaying, his fever spiking uncontrollably. He managed to stumble home to his apartment, collapsing onto his bed in a haze of exhaustion and fever dreams.