#Upstead kid names

[uptondixon]

Upstead Foster Daughter

Did you ever wonder how Upstead would be as foster parents for a teenage girl? Like Hank and Erin, Hailey and Jay welcomed Olivia to their home when she was 16. Olivia holds a lot of grudges and is full of mischief, but she is also incredibly sweet and has a tremendous need to feel like she belongs. To her surprise, Hailey and Jay will give her exactly that.

Masterlist

[Chapter II] “You’re on your own, kid, you always have been”

No one expected to hear a stranger's voice through their radio, let alone saying that Jay was bleeding out on the pavement.

“Who the hell are you?” Voight’s surprised voice came through the radio.

“My name is Olivia Rivera, I'm with your officer Halstead and he's been shot! I'm sorry I couldn't call an ambulance but I don't have my phone with me,” Olivia said everything so fast they almost couldn't understand it.

“Shot? What the hell?” said Hailey in exasperation. She was driving with Voight after Jay left by himself.

The whole team was checking the crime scene from their current case when Jay got a call from a CI. Hailey was busy interrogating a witness when he got the call. She told him to wait for her but he was so eager for whatever information his CI had to give that he decided to go by himself. Turns out it was a trap. Hailey did not know the details yet, but she couldn’t help but think that this would have not happened if she had been with him.

“Wh-where are you?” Hailey asked, already feeling her heart start to beat out of her chest.

Olivia told her the address as slowly as possible in her state; after that, Hailey started bombarding her with questions she did not know how to answer.

While they talked, Voight rushed in passing the address to dispatch requesting an ambulance and some patrol cars. The rest of the team followed behind.

“Is he conscious?” Hailey asked.

Silence followed her question, leaving them both tense.

“Olivia! Is he conscious?” Hailey repeated.

“I- He- He was until now when I called you.”

“Does he still have a pulse, Olivia?” Hailey guided her to check.

“Yes, he does!”

“Okay, okay, keep putting pressure on the wound.”

“What's the ambulance ETA?” Voight's rough voice questioned dispatch.

“We're close, hang tight Olivia,” Hailey said, trying to calm the girl and herself down. He would make it, he always made it. This was not his first time being shot, but she surely hoped it was his last. She couldn't do this last time and she especially can't do it now.

“He'll be fine, Hailey,” Voight's voice invaded her thoughts. “Halstead’s strong, he'll get through this.”

Olivia didn't like hospitals. She felt trapped, unsafe, and overwhelmed. Probably because of the amount of people coming and going, the voices overlapping each other. There was too much going on and she shouldn't even be there in the first place.

After Jay's co-workers got to them everything happened in a blur. The ambulance got there seconds later, along with the other members of the team.

When Hailey and Voight arrived, Hailey came running in Jay and Olivia’s direction. She stared at the teenager with a mix of desperation and gratitude. Olivia stepped away as Hailey took her place. As others approached, Olivia stepped more and more away from the scene, ending up a little far away from it all.

She watched the scene unfold before her eyes in a trance. Jay was put into an ambulance and taken to the hospital, with several police cars following behind. Should she leave? She wants to know if he is going to be alright, of course. On the other hand, she feels like she was not supposed to be there.

“Hey! Olivia, isn't it?” a tall man appeared in her field of vision, his eyes were gentle and his voice calm.

“Yes,” Olivia answered.

“Name’s Kevin, Kevin Atwater. This is my friend, Kim Burgess,” he pointed to the woman beside him, and she smiled softly. Both officers looked shaken but they masked well, Olivia thought. Of course, this was not easy for them. Seeing a colleague hurt like that, almost lifeless.

“There's someone we can call for you? Your mom or dad?” Kim asked.

The girl didn’t answer. Kevin and Kim exchanged a look.

“Well, just come to the hospital with us then, okay?”

Voight watched them from afar, getting ready to enter the car and head to Med. Jay was the priority now, but they all were grateful for the girl, she saved Jay’s life after all. He made a mental note to thank her personally later.

Olivia debated for a moment. She decided it was better if she went with them and found a way to leave later without them noticing.

She nodded and followed them to the car.

“You can get cleaned up there,” Kim said after getting in the car.

Kevin started the drive to Med. Olivia didn’t answer the officer, suddenly feeling hyper-aware of all the blood on her. The adrenaline was wearing down.

“Are you okay, Olivia?” Kim asked softly.

“Yeah, sorry… I'm fine.”

“It’s okay, we will get to the hospital soon.”

Sitting in the doctors' room in Chicago Med a couple of hours later, Olivia was clean and waiting for a chance to leave. The really nice nurse called April who helped her clean up and gave her some food came by minutes ago and told her Jay would be alright. She left again when another nurse called for her so now was the perfect time for Olivia to leave.

She did not need to be discharged since she was neither a patient nor a suspect, right? Olivia got up and left the room, bringing some of the snacks the nurse gave her.

“Don’t worry Hails, we’re getting the bastard who shot Jay,” Kevin said firmly, looking at a very distressed-looking Hailey. Olivia got to the hospital’s lounge and saw Jay’s team reunited talking. They had their backs to the door she entered and could not see her.

They started to talk about the man who shot Jay and what they were doing to find him, most of which Olivia did not understand or did not care to try to understand. She stopped paying attention and started to plan how she would get out of there. There was only one way out and she could not leave without them seeing her.

Olivia was scared. She knew she wasn’t in trouble or anything but they were still police so she might as well be in trouble if they got to know more about her. Hell, they might as well already know.

“Stay with your husband Hailey, we’ll get him,” Voight's words drew Olivia's attention. Husband? That explained why Hailey was the most distressed of them all. The look on her face when she saw him lying on the pavement.

“Oh! Olivia, there you are,” said April, the nurse who helped Olivia earlier. Olivia's name caught the group's attention and five heads turned to look in her direction.

“Olivia!” Voight said, approaching the girl. “How are you? I need to properly thank you for helping my detective, I don’t know what could have happened if you weren’t there.”

“I… well, he was…” Olivia did not know what to say, so she came with a simple “You’re welcome” and a shy smile. She didn't expect to talk with anyone, let alone have all the attention on her.

“Well, I’m Sergeant Hank Voight and this is my team,” he went on introducing each of them. “You met Officer Kim Burgess and Officer Kevin Atwater. Detective Hailey Upton was the one you spoke with on the radio. And that is Officer Adam Ruzek.” he pointed to each one and they gave her a nod or a small smile.

After the introduction, he turned to look at her again. He spoke in a more serious tone, “We’re going to need your statement.”

Shit. That is exactly what she was trying to avoid. “I can’t!” was the first thing that came out of her mouth.

“It’s okay Olivia, we checked your file and we’re going to call your foster family on the way to the station,” Hank said.

So they know about her foster family, but they did not know she had run away yet. That was why she was in that alley, in that part of town, by herself.

Olivia thought about running but she could never get far with this many cops around. On their way to the district, she thought about jumping from the moving car but that was too stupid even for her. She laughed at the thought. Sitting in the car with Kim and Kevin again, she accepted her fate.

All her effort running away was for nothing. She was back to square one.

Slow, I know, but this is me trying guys. I love this OC so I hope I can keep writing her story even though I'm slow af. Thank you so much for the likes and reblogs on chapter one! ♡

[cynicalone94]

Fanfiction Master List

Hey guys,

I've been a whump fan since I was a kid. My primary mode of expression is through writing fanfiction.

Most of my work is in the Chicago PD fandom with Jay Halstead as my number one target. I also write fiction here and there for Marvel, Brooklyn 99, and 9-1-1 Lone Star.

Chicago PD

I Don't Have Any Beneficiaries Anyway

Alternate Ending to 2x03 Weigh Station. When Jay fails to get the upper hand and is traded for Alex Price, the team scrambles to find him before its too late.

Just Another Day

Jay gets hurt during a raid. So just another day for the Intelligence Unit.

Rather Take a Bullet Than Get a Flu Shot

Friendly teasing goes too far. And just why does Jay hate needles so much?

Cost of Doing Business

A trip to Med to meet his brother for lunch becomes more dangerous than Jay had anticipated.

He's My Brother

Will knows about the death of Roy Walton and the cover up and he's not happy with his brother's new wife.

Living Donation

With his daughter's life on the line, a rich businessman makes a risky decision. But did he make the right choice?

Your Boy Tough

An annual taser recertification course brings up bad memories for Jay.

In The Wind

In a dense forest, sometimes even ten feet is too far.

I'd Rather Stay At Work

Jay actually admits he's sick. It doesn't go well.

Imbalance of Power

Sometimes the easiest way to make someone talk is to give them the upper hand.

Sacrifices

How do you judge whether a sacrifice is "worth it"?

Where He Should Be Safe

A sixteen part series of Jay having a bad time in places where he should be able to feel safe.

The Past Has a Price

When someone from Jay's past returns to take Will hostage, will the brothers make it out of this one alive?

Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Tag to 2x20 The Number of Rats. Gregory Yates becomes aware that Will Halstead is being questioned and sees an opportunity to shift the blame. **Update 11/19 Tags and warnings have been updated to include rape/noncon elements. It's kind of implied with the Tag to 2x20 but better safe than sorry. There's nothing explicit in this story but it is mentioned.

Upstead One Shots

A series of oneshots featuring Upstead and their beautiful family.

Up-Hill

Tag to my story In The Name of Justice. They might not be on the best terms but when Jay has a panic attack, Will can still find a way to bring him home. Pre-series.

Repaid in Kind

Tag to 9x13 Still Water. After Dylan was arrested, they thought all that was left to combat was Hailey's guilt over not saving Lisa. Turns out there was more.

Tripwire

Pre-series story from Jay's days in Afghanistan. Tag to Guilty Until Proven Innocent. How did Jay recognize the sound of the tripwire in time to dive out of the way?

What's Your Verdict?

The final day in court to wrap up a case that Intelligence has invested so much in takes a surprising turn. Hailey is put in a difficult position and every choice that she makes can only hurt her husband more.

Witness Tampering

The mundane lead up to a trial suddenly becomes a race against time when Hailey's husband is kidnapped to keep her from testifying. Will they find Jay in time? Or will a dangerous criminal evade justice yet again?

Chrysalis

An on the job injury changes Jay's life forever and he struggles to navigate the aftermath.

I Don't Know Me

Jay (at least that's what she said his name was) wakes up after a serious head injury with no memory of who he is or what happened to him. He's relieved when a woman shows up, telling him his name and claiming to be his wife. Finally, someone to fill in the blanks and answer some questions. Only… something about Meredith doesn't seem quite right and he isn't sure he can trust her. But what other choice does he have?

Friends in Strange Places

Jay is taken hostage by drug dealers when a sting goes sideways. But when they find out that his name isn't Ryan Clarke things take an interesting turn.

Missed Opportunities

Have you ever watched an episode of Chicago PD and been disappointed that Jay wasn't more seriously hurt? Well then you're a monster but you're also in the right place because so am I. Alternate episode endings focused on the idea of increasing Jay Halstead Whump.

Childhood Secrets

When Jay learns that the man who molested him as a child is out of prison and that two of the man's other victims have been brutally raped and murdered since his release, he's pretty sure it's not a coincidence. But will he survive long enough to prove it?

Missing PTSD Moments

Missing moments from the show where the events taking place really should have triggered Jay's PTSD. Starting with the ambush from the opening of Forty-Caliber Bread Crumb.

Stigma

When a minor on the job injury opens a can of worms, how will the team handle the revelation that one of their own has been trapped in an abusive relationship? And that another member of the team isn't the person they thought she was. NOTE: This story might be difficult for Erin Lindsey lovers. Please know that I do not hate her, nor do I think she was abusive to Jay, she just fits with the plot that I've come up with.

9-1-1 Lone Star

Burner Phone

Someone from TK's past arrives in Austin to make amends. But is everything as it seems?

Making Him Jealous

When Sadie Beck escapes from prison, she finds another crazy way to get the relationship with Owen that she thinks fate has promised her, making him jealous. Will Carlos survive her latest strategy?

Miscellaneous

Thanksgiving - Brooklyn 99

Jake gets hurt when he and Amy's fathers are fighting, adding injury to insult. Tag to "Two Turkeys"

First Impressions - Marvel

Bruce Banner gets to meet Tony's new intern.

[tevantarlos]

One of the Biggest Problems I Have... As A Multishipper...

A lot of the time I genuinely feel like I don't have a place, in certain fandoms. Most times it's either this or that. And hell is rained down on anyone who says they like both.

To use some examples in the One Chicago fandom. I ship Dawsey and Brettsey on Chicago Fire. For anyone who doesn't speak ship names, that means Matt Casey/Gabby Dawson, and Matt Casey/Sylvie Brett.

I also ship Linstead and Upstead on Chicago PD. That means Jay Halstead/Erin Lindsay, and Jay Halstead/Hailey Upton. I feel like I don't really have a place among either of the fanbases, because of the fact that I sail both ships and many or most fans of one ship, hate the other with a fiery passion. It makes trying to find my place in fandom confusing and hurtful. I used to ship Buddie in the 9-1-1 fandom, but hate for Eddie with anyone but Buck, ruined my enjoyment of the non-canon ship, and even the canon Buddie friendship. Another example I've had is where people say, "You're not a true fan!" Because in the General Hospital fandom, I ship Sam with almost anyone. I shipped her with Jason, Sonny, Jax, Patrick, Johnny, Logan, Cooper, Dante, Cruz and more through the years. Some people think that because I'm not completely devoted to one ship forever and ever, that I'm not a true fan. I beg to differ. I feel like you're not the true fan if you're hung up on just that one ship when it's ended and the character has moved on and is in a new relationship and is happy as hell.

You can like what you like. I'm not saying you can't. But don't call me out and claim I'm not a 'true fan' because I don't obsess over one single ship for my favorite character like you do. People change and grow, and meet and fall in love with new people all the time, and I like that. I'd rather that, than have my favorite character stuck in place and in a relationship with a man who doesn't respect his partner, and puts his partner, and all of his kids last, and runs off to do everyone else's bidding. (Looking at the asshole that is Jason Morgan on GH. Always up Sonny and Carly's asses, and their kid's asses, too! But when it comes to his ex-wife and his son's, it's like, who? F him.)

[bishopsbelova]

I swear every time I get on pinterest, there’s always a damn photo that reminds me of upstead and I turn into an emotional mess.

Also my brain has indirectly decided that they are in fact boy parents; but not what they’d name their kids

[go-to-two]

I guess if upstead babies never exist on the show, that's one less thing for the writers to mess up. They can exist in our heads and everything works out!

I imagine they would have a little girl called Zoe. It is Greek but still common. It is also one of my favorite names and the name of my first doll so I might be biased. Maybe they would have a boy called Theodore (Theo). I have always told myself upstead and I would have similar taste in names lol.

That's one way to look at it!

Kids definitely seem like something that will only exist in fanon. It's so fun to see what people think Jay and Hailey would name a baby. Zoe and Theo are cute! I have always thought they'd stay simple and classic. Basically anything on the current top ten name list- Olivia/Emma/Ava/Sophia/Mia or Liam/Noah/Oliver/Lucas- would also be fully believable to me.

My current favorite names are Lucy, Avery, or Eden for a girl and Ellis or William (ha!) for a boy. I'm not sure they'd jive with some of mine too easily.

Also- props on having an actual, respectable name for your first doll! Mine was Blue Baby. It wasn't even trendy or unique like Beyonce's Blue. It was Blue Baby, her full and given name.

[agent-bash]

Can you give us a little background of how you came with the idea of IDAS, that upstead will have a kid, why a baby boy, the name Ollie and a little bit more

Like most of my AUs, it was a random 'hey what if...' that crossed my mind, it just had to the fortune of not being at the worst time, so I was actually able to jot the idea down.

As to them having a boy, not a girl: 1) pretty everyone gives them a daughter when writing Upstead having kids. I think I've seen one maybe two other stories, not written by me, where they have a son. 2) at one point, people were getting aggressive about my giving them a son in *gasp* two stories 😱. Because apparently Jay is a girl dad and girl dad only and I'm an idiot for daring to write otherwise. So now, whenever I choose to write Upstead having a child, it will always be a boy.

As to Oliver and said in a few previous asks (not they were posted before you sent this) it's just a name I like, that I think they would too, and when I was indecisive about it, I posted a poll here and it won.

[specialagentsoftie]

Faith | j.h. & h.u

*Gif doesn’t belong to me! Credits to the owner <3 Pairing: Jay Halstead & Hailey Upton x Sister!Reader Requested: yes by anon! "I saw you said upstead requests were ok so maybe imagine upstead talking about kids but there's a reader character in it somehow, maybe poly upstead? you can choose how to add it in ❤️" Warnings: none? Word count: 1.2k ish A/N: so this was a concept/drabble request... but it got outta hand. and its now just a shorter oneshot. i have so much respect for char x char writers bc idk how yall do it. jesus. idk what im doing lorddddddd

Y/D/N (your daughter’s name) was born 6 months ago and every weekend since she got here, Jay and Will would take turns visiting you to see what they could do to make things easier. You loved the help.

Jay didn’t start bringing Hailey by until recently, but you enjoyed having your girl time again. It had been a while since you had the mental capacity for it.

This week, you could tell that the detective had something on her mind. Between the baby questions and her asking you when you knew you were ready for a baby… all the beating around the bush, you just decided to get to the point.

“You and Jay ever talk about kids?”

“Yeah, we have. It's just that...Jay would be such a great dad.”

“I agree. We love Uncle Jay, don’t we,” you cooed as you shoveled mush into the baby girl’s mouth. “So what’s the problem?"

“I just— I don’t know. Would I even be a good mom? How would I know if I'm ready? If we're ready? Babies and I aren’t really on the same page… and the job..."

“Oh come on. Hailey." You can’t stop the scoff that escapes from your lips. "You never know if you're truly ready or not, but I’ve seen you with kids, you’re great with them.”

“Kids aren’t the same as babies, Y/N!"

You rolled your eyes, knowing damn well that Hailey Upton would rather chase down bad guys and put people in jail than hold a baby.

“They’re so little and fragile,” she whined, her face twisting in discomfort at the thought of dropping one of them.

“You wanna practice?” you asked as you held out your daughter for Hailey to hold.

You really meant to give her a choice, you think, but you’re placing Y/D/N in the blonde’s arms before she even gets a chance to answer.

A rainbow of emotions appears on Hailey's face from confusion to shock, to panic as she realized there was an infant in her arms.

You let out a chuckle as you watch her mouth something to your brother and awkwardly bounced the baby on her chest. It was probably something like “what am I supposed to do with this”, but you knew she’d get it eventually.

After all, who could resist the sweet facial features you and your brothers seemed to share? Your daughter was no exception to Halstead genetics.

Jay quickly raised his hands in surrender and left the room, that knowing smirk on his face telling his girlfriend that she was doing fine and to figure it out.

Just like you expected, it didn’t take long for Hailey to melt from the happy girl’s giggles. No less than 20 minutes later, someone wasn’t ready to let Y/D/N go.

“Are you ever going to give me my baby back?” You laugh as you see the pout appear on Hailey’s face, hugging the little girl tighter in protest. “I’m just kidding, Hails. I’ve got a couple more things to do before I’ll need the munchkin.”

“She’s just so cute, Y/N. Look at those cheeks. Look at that smile! Oh my god, she’s smiling at me.”

“What can I say, she loves her Aunt Hailey,” you say as you walk over to where Hailey was sitting with your daughter propped up against her legs. You can’t help but admire the sight for a moment, before leaning over the back of the couch and giving her a rub on the shoulders. “And for the record, I think you’d be a wonderful mom.”

Hailey turns at your words, looking at you like you couldn’t possibly know that. But you did because for some people, you can just tell. It's so obvious.

You could tell by the way she looked at your brother, how much love she had for him and the trust they had for each other. When Jay got hurt, she was right there by his side, every second of the day that he had to stay in the hospital.

There was no doubt in your mind that Hailey was going to be the best mom to their kids.

“Really?” she whispers, and the small nod and smile you give her made her heart soar. You didn’t need to say anything else, she understood.

Standing up to return to your chores, you plant a comforting kiss on the crown of Hailey’s head.

It was something you started doing after you had your daughter and Hailey shut her eyes at the feeling, thinking about how much your validation meant to her.

You, being the ever-observant baby of the Halstead family, were the first one to notice there was anything going on between your brother and his partner. Since day 1, you were their biggest supporter.

You and Hailey were fast friends and you always saw her as the older sister you never had.

“I’m gonna steal her,” Hailey calls to you as you turned your back.

“Fat chance, blondie!” Your voice echoes down the hall, leaving her to continue playing with your daughter while you got things done.

Hailey, too infatuated by the tiny fingers wrapped around her own, doesn’t hear the soft footsteps making their way over to her.

“See? Even my sister thinks you’d be a great mom.” Jay’s voice broke the silence as he walked into the room, taking a seat next to his girlfriend on the couch. "And Y/N would know because she's one herself.”

“You heard that?”

“Mmhm."

“That was a dirty trick you pulled back there, leaving me alone with this little squish,” Hailey cooed, her finger stroking Y/D/N’s chubby cheeks.

“I knew you had it under control. You always do.”

“How do you Halsteads have so much faith in everyone? You and Will, and Y/N definitely has it the worst.”

Jay chuckled to himself, knowing that you had always been the best pep talker, even when you were a little kid.

“Well, that’s how our mom was and Y/N is, without a doubt, her mini-me if I ever saw one. I just wish mom could have met you. She would have loved you, so much,” he murmured as his hand came up to cup Hailey’s jaw, running his thumb over her skin lightly.

She leaned into his palm as he turned her face towards him and brought her lips to meet his.

Nothing happened, but moms hear everything. Even the almost indiscernible moan that escapes from Hailey’s mouth as Jay bit her bottom lip didn’t go unnoticed by you… all the way from the laundry room.

“I swear to god, Jay, if y’all are gonna make a baby right now, get your asses outta my house please!”

“We should get out of here,” Jay whispered and the blonde nodded eagerly.

Jay got up from the couch with his girlfriend riding his coattails, finding you in the house in record time and handing you back your kid like she was a sack of potatoes.

Y/D/N was giggling like a maniac at her uncle's manhandling and you manage to shoot your brother a "really?" look before you're tackled by another person.

“Thanks for the baby fix, Y/N/N!” Hailey chirped as she wrapped you in a quick, albeit tight, hug and gave a peck to your cheek.

“Go.” You shook your head as you chuckled to yourself and the two were holding in their own laughs as they fled from your doorstep, hand in hand like they were teenagers again.

When did you become the mature one around here?

Upstead Taglist

@sylvieshay

[justanotheronechicagofan]

LOVED THIS!! such a unique au! And it is hilariousss 😂🥰 would totally bat if these became a series

✨ monster ✨

pairing: jay halstead x hailey upton

written based on prompt:

“our kids are bitter rivals and the only time we ever meet is when we’re both called to the principal’s office and whatever maybe i think you’re kind of cute but your kid’s a monster”

warnings: swearing, fluffery 

masterlist

au || detective jay || lawyer hailey

Keep reading

[justmypartner]

what are your top 10 girl and boy names for a halstead baby?

I have to be honest and say I don’t have any boy names for them. I definitely think Jay is a girl dad and Hailey is a boy mom, but there aren’t any boy names that stand out to me the way girl names have. So I’ll answer with my fav baby girl Halstead names (just 2😬).

@imjustwritingg’s MIWF is canon in my mind. Idc. So at least one of their children must be named Avery.

I also named their daughter Ophelia in my story Carefully and Intentionally. It’s actually inspired by a kid I worked with a few months back who was a spitting image of what I’ve always imagined upstead’s daughter would look like. I think they would call her “O” or “Phe” for short. As a bonus, Ophelia is a name with Greek origins!!

[study-coffee-chicago]

Royalty AU Part 2 (An Upstead + Upton Sister imagine) {Part of AU-gust}

A/N: Thank you for reading! Please remember to like/reblog, comment, and send me asks! Here's the link to the playlist I listened to while writing in case you want to listen to while reading (not my playlist): royalty au that is not just waltzing.

masterlist

"I don't even understand why I have to do this in the first place," sixteen-year-old Harper complained to her older sister, Princess Hailey Upton-Halstead, and her brother-in-law, Prince Jay Halstead.

"We've gone over this," Hailey groaned.

"Yeah? Well, do it again. Because I seriously don't see the point in dancing with a ton of strangers and trying to find a suitor. You expect me to choose who I'm going to marry in one night after one dance? I don't even like dancing."

"Well, pretend anyway!" Jay snapped.

Harper rolled her eyes. "And who do you think you are? My father?" she sneered.

"Hey!" Hailey yelled. "You do not talk to him like that! He and Will are more like fathers to you than our actual father, so I suggest you show Jay here some respect!"

"Ugh!" Harper yelled and stalked off outside into the spring air.

Then, she made her way out to the stables. She walked in and she made a beeline to her horse, Blue. Jay had taught Hailey how to ride this exact horse and after she and Harper officially moved in, Jay took some time to teach Harper how to ride as well. Blue quickly took a liking to the then six-year-old as she always fed him blueberries because Harper said that Blue needs blueberries and Jay couldn't tell her no. So, she fed him and brushed him and gave him all the attention in the world, so eventually, he just became her horse.

She opened the stall door and sat on a bale of hay, right next to Blue. He nudged her arm.

"I know," she said. "I'm sorry, but I don't have any treats for you right now. Jay and Hailey told me that I can't get dirty so I can't ride you right now either." He nudged her again. "How rude of them, I agree." She sighed. "It's just ridiculous, Blue. I'm not even a princess, I don't know why they're doing this. I'm not Hailey's and Jay's child, even though they treat me like a child most of the time, and I didn't marry a prince. Therefore, I'm not a princess. So why do I have to go to this stupid ball to find someone to marry who I won't even love in the first place?"

Blue's ears perked up and he looked up. So, Harper followed his gaze. And, she saw Jay standing there, outside of Blue's stall, with a few sugar cubes in his hand.

"Can I come in?" he asked. "I'm pretty sure Blue would be quite mad if he saw the sugar cubes and didn't get them."

Harper nodded her head once and he opened the stall door and then closed it. But, she wasn't going to talk to him.

He set his palm flat and allowed Blue to start eating the sugar cubes. Harper rested her elbow on her knee and put her head in her hand, just waiting for Jay to leave.

"You know, there will be other balls besides this one," he said.

"I have to do more of these?" she whined.

Jay chuckled. "Well, yeah. Me and your sister don't expect you to find your perfect match after one dance. Just have some potential suitors open. And then, there will be more balls, and when you find someone you like, more balls after that with the main event being you and him."

"I just don't get it," Harper stated. "I'm not a princess in the first place. And, our neighboring kingdom is on the brink of war and you want me to focus on a damn ball? For crying out loud, the Severides don't like our rule and for all we know, rebels have invaded their kingdom and taken them over! And, since they don't like us, the Severides and rebels could be allies and be trying to infiltrate us."

"Listen," Jay started after Blue finished the sugar cubes. He motioned to the hay bale right next to Harper. "Can I sit?"

"I guess," she huffed and crossed her arms across her chest.

Jay sighed. "Listen, Harper. You say you're not a princess, but you are."

"No, I'm not! You know this!"

"Me and your sister aren't going to have any kids, Harper. After everything you both went through with your father, Hailey doesn't want kids in the slightest. And, I'm respecting her wishes. So, I'll take over for Will when he's done ruling. But, after that, I've named you as my heir."

"W-What? But legally, I can't."

Jay shook his head. "Harper, I'm a royal. I can make whatever rules I want. Hailey and I were going to tell you together after the ball, but seeing as you aren't a big fan of it, we've decided to tell you now."

"What does this mean?" she asked. "I have to marry a prince? I can't marry a commoner if I happen to meet one?"

"No, no it doesn't mean that at all. It just means to be smart with your decision. And, well, if you see Blake at the dance, don't shy away from him."

"Jay," she groaned.

"Hey, it's up to you, but bringing two kingdoms together would be a plus...even if they aren't really on our good side right now."

Jay looked down at his watch.

"I need to go, don't I?" Harper asked as she looked down.

"Yeah, you should probably start getting ready. Are you nervous?"

"I mean, now that it's finally becoming real and I actually have to go, I guess I am a little nervous. What if I fall or mess up during a dance?"

"Harper, we've practiced these dances since you were seven. You'll do fine."

"When do I get to dance?" seven-year-old Harper asked sweetly as she walked into the ballroom where Hailey and Jay were practicing the dance that they had to do for their wedding.

"God, Jay," Will said as he entered, not noticing little Harper. "You're terrible at leading. Maybe Hailey should lead instead. You're sh--"

Hailey cut him off by coughing and subtly pointing at Harper.

"--you're not very good at it," Will said.

"Says the man who hasn't even gotten married yet," Jay scoffed.

"I can do it!" Harper exclaimed. "I can dance, too!"

Will smiled down at her. "I'm sure you can. But, this is big kid dancing."

"B-But I am a big girl," Harper said as her bottle lip began to wobble. "Hailey said so."

"Harps, do you want to dance with me?" Hailey asked as she let go of Jay's hands and made her way over to her little sister.

"Can I?" she asked timidly.

Hailey smiled. "Of course you can. And, maybe while we're dancing together, Will can help Jay learn how to lead a little bit better." She threw a wink her future husband's way and Jay threw his arms up in exasperation. Will just held back his laughter.

Harper grabbed Hailey's hands and the two sisters began dancing together.

"May I cut in?" Jay asked and offered his arm to Harper. She giggled and nodded and then the two of them danced. Then, Will took over dancing with Harper so that Jay could practice with Hailey again.

"Between all the times I danced with Will when you and Hailey were practicing for things, I barely had to practice for my first ball," Harper joked.

"But now everyone's eyes will be on you and not me and Hailey," Jay pointed out.

Blue let out a neigh. "I know, Blue," Harper said and stroked her horse. "You tell him. That didn't help at all."

"Sorry." Then, Jay held his hand out to the girl who he viewed as his little sister. "Ready?" he asked as she took his hand.

"As I'll ever be," Harper answered nervously and allowed Jay to help her up. Then, they walked out of the stables and back to the castle so that Harper could continue getting ready.

***

Good Lord this gown is itchy, was what Harper was thinking. And, I could really use a drink if I have to dance with more ugly royals.

Harper glanced at the ballroom entrance where Adam and Kevin were guarding the doors. Maybe she could sneak out undetected. But, Adam made eye contact with her and just shook his head and chuckled.

Okay, so getting out of here's a no-go. Stupid rule that Jay and Hailey put in place that I can't drink until the end of the dance. Easy for them to say, they're just chatting it up in the corner with glasses of wine and don't have to worry about the future because they've already found their soulmate.

So, Harper swallowed her pride and made her way over to her sister and her brother-in-law. She really needed something else to focus on, and maybe focusing on the sweet taste of sips of Moscato falling down her throat would help. (After all, this is the victorian age, there's no age limit on when someone can start drinking.)

She picked up a glass from the servant's tray and said her thanks, but Hailey quickly swiped it from her hand.

"Hailey, c'mon. Please," Harper whined.

"No, Harper. You know the rules: no wine until after the ball is over."

"But you two aren't even dancing. Why do I have to?"

Hailey sighed in frustration. "Harper, we've been over this. You have to find a husband. You can't just be a spinster all your life."

"Why not? Because I know once I get married, I won't have any power or say in anything and I'll just be nice to look at. My husband will make all the decisions and I won't have a say in my own life!"

People turned their heads at her raised voice.

"Harper," Jay whispered sternly. "I suggest you go dance with someone or talk with someone else before you make both of us even more frustrated than we already are." Harper scoffed. Jay raised an eyebrow. "You will not dishonor this family, this kingdom, not after everything Will, Hailey, and I have done for you. Now go."

Harper resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She wasn't the one who asked Hailey to bring her here ten years ago when she woke her up in the dead of night to get her away from their abusive father. She never asked for this. But, here she was, having to dance and find someone who would control her for the rest of her life...just like their father did with their mother.

But, she walked away anyway...just as a waltz began to play.

Fantastic, she thought.

She started to walk towards the sides of the ballroom, maybe she could avoid having to waltz with a stranger, but she knew that it'd probably be no use seeing as this ball was for her in the first place.

She looked down at her feet as she walked, the end of her light blue ball gown dragging on the floor behind her.

She stopped when she saw that someone was blocking her path. Because she wasn't looking up, she only saw his shoes and the black dress pants he was wearing. Slowly, she raised her head.

He had brown hair, a cocky smile, and his eyes sparkled. He held out his hand.

"May I have this dance, Princess?" he asked.

Harper nodded. "You may," she answered.

She knew that if Jay, Hailey, or Will saw her turn down a dance, that they wouldn't be too happy, so she reluctantly accepted his hand and they started to waltz.

"By your facial expression, I take it you don't want to be here?" he asked.

"It's that obvious, is it?" she asked.

"Only a little. By the way, I'm Blake G--"

Everyone in the ballroom gasped as the lanterns that were lighting the room went out, and the musicians stopped playing a few seconds later as they couldn't see.

"If we can't get a real royal, we'll have to take you instead," was the last thing that Harper heard before a rag was shoved against her mouth and nose. She felt herself being carried, felt her hand still holding this Blake character's hand, and then she felt herself quickly slip into an unconscious state from whatever poison that rag had been soaked in.

***

Guards came up from the shadows and ushered Hailey and Jay into a secret hideout behind where they had been standing sipping on their wine and watching Harper dance with Blake Gallo-Severide.

"What the hell's going on?" Jay whispered angrily at the guard.

"We don't know, your highness. The lights went out so we figured it best to get you to safety as quick as possible."

"What about Harper?" Hailey asked worriedly. "Where is she? Is she safe?"

"That I don't know, my lady."

Then, the door came busting open and the guard drew his sword.

"It's only me; it's Ruzek," Adam said as he entered.

"Adam!" Jay whisper-yelled. "Where's Harper? Is she in another hideout?"

"Jay, I don't know, I just came through the tunnels to make sure that you and Hailey were safe. I can go look in other ones if you want. But, along with you, I'm trying to find out what happened in the first place. I have other guards, being led by Kevin, who are making sure that Harper and Will are safe."

"Good," Jay said. "If they're being led by him, that means they'll do a thorough sweep." He paused. "Just keep doing what you planned on, Adam."

"Alright, I'll let you know when it's safe to come out. It'll probably be at least half an hour because, even though the lights are back on, we need to make sure that the guests are all out safely and do a sweep of the palace to make sure that you can come out. This will all be done at the same time. There are servants and guards getting the guests out safely while the rest of us will sweep the palace and the tunnels."

"Okay." Jay gave him a nod, which signaled that Adam Ruzek could leave to continue his job of keeping the royal family safe.

***

"You may come out now," Adam said and then ushered Hailey and Jay out of the secret room 45 minutes later.

"Where's Harper?" Hailey asked.

Silence.

"Where's Will?" Jay asked.

"Jay!"

Jay heard his name being called and looked up to see his older brother, the king, running towards him.

"Are you and Hailey alright? I had one of the guards run down to the infirmary to tell April what was going on in case we or guests got hurt when the lights went off."

"We're fine," Hailey said quickly. She turned back to Adam and took a few steps toward him so she was only separated from him by a matter of inches. "Where is my little sister, Adam? And it'd be in your best interest to tell me the truth. Right now."

"Hailey, Jay, we couldn't find her."

"What?" Hailey screamed.

"We searched all the hideouts and the tunnels and swept the palace left and right, but there was no sign of her. I'm sorry."

Hailey took another step forward. "You're sorry? You're sorry?" she yelled. "It was your job to keep every single person in this ballroom safe and you let the person that this was meant for go missing! Missing! God, how could you let this happen? We trust you with our lives, Adam!"

Hailey felt someone place a hand on her shoulder.

"Hailey, sweetheart, how about we go get a cup of tea or coffee, and you let Adam explain what happened to Will," Jay suggested calmly.

"No! I don't need tea or coffee or any other hot beverage, Jay! I need my sister!" she yelled and spun around to face her husband.

"Sweetheart, I understand that. We all understand that. But, yelling at Adam here isn't going to get her back. We need to understand what happened so that we can find her. And for that, Adam needs to be able to do his job."

Hailey took a deep breath. "You're right, you're right. It's just, the last thing we did was fight. I can't-- what if..." She sniffled. "What if that's the last time I saw her?"

Then, she threw herself into Jay's arms and wrapped her arms loosely around his neck.

"I'll take care of her," he said quietly to Adam and Will. "Figure out what happened. And, Will, come tell us right away."

Will nodded and then Jay walked away with his very distraught wife still holding onto him.

Once they were out of earshot, Will turned his gaze directly onto Adam.

"What the hell happened?" he asked and threw his arms up above his head in exasperation.

"Let me preface this by saying that you will not like this answer." Will cocked an eyebrow at the head guard, urging him to continue. "A new guard had to take a leak."

"A guard had to take a piss?" Will practically yelled. "That's why we're in this mess? That's why Harper's missing? They know they aren't supposed to use the bathroom unless someone else can cover their post for them when there's a huge event or until the event's over."

"Kevin's already fired him, don't worry about that."

Will sighed in frustration. "So how'd it happen? How'd the lights go out?"

"You know how they're all connected to one main lamp?" Will nodded. "Whoever infiltrated lit a match and caused the coil to get too hot, thus causing the main lamp to pop--"

"...which caused all the rest of them in the ballroom to go out," Will finished. "I knew it was a bad idea to have them connected to one. I'll send a telegram to Casey right now to get him to change that and make them have different sources. Do you have any idea where they went? Any horse or wagon tracks to go off of?"

"That's what Kevin's looking at right now with others. But, I'm assuming that since they came in through the east window, that they came from the east."

"Is that the first place he's checking for tracks?"

"Yes."

"Good. We need to find her and get her home in one piece."

***

"God!" Hailey yelled when she and Jay were back in their bedroom, a guard outside their door. She was pacing nervously in front of their large, canopied bed while Jay sat on the edge of it, trying to calm down his wife. The coffee that he had Kim bring them was all but forgotten on the table in front of the newly lit fireplace. "She didn't even want to have a ball in the first place! If we just listened to her--"

"Hailey!" Jay yelled at her. She stopped pacing and whipped around to face him. He never raised his voice at her. Ever. Jay held his hands up in a sign of surrender. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. But, I need you to calm down--"

"Don't tell me what to do!" she snapped. But then, she took a deep breath and lowered her voice. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I expect you not to yell at me, but then I yell at you. It's unfair, really. I'm sorry."

Jay stood up and walked over to her. Then, he placed his hands on her shoulders and looked directly into her teary eyes. "Hailey, you have nothing to apologize for. Your sister's missing. You have every right to be angry and yell."

"I know, I know. But this isn't your fault. And here I am, yelling at you. It's not fair for me to do to you."

"Listen, they'll find her. I promise you that."

"But how do you know that?"

"Because you and her didn't just escape your hellish dad for her to go down like this. She'll be okay. We'll find her and bring her home."

A tear rolled down Hailey's cheek and she took a deep, shaky breath. "How do you always do this? Talk me down?"

"Well, I have had ten years of practice now," he replied cheekily. Hailey faintly smiled and shook her head. "C'mon, let's drink this coffee before it turns into icicles, and then we can go to bed or get an update from Adam, Kevin, or Will if you want."

Hailey took Jay's hand and the two sat by the fireplace and drank their coffee, but worry was swirling around both of their heads.

***

Harper coughed as she slowly awoke in a damp and dingy place, the candle on the floor sitting in the rusty candle holder the only light. She felt rope digging into her wrists. The stone was rough and cold against her back.

"Princess, you awake?" she heard someone say.

Wait, she knew that voice. That was the voice of the man she was dancing with at the ball when all the lights went out. Blake something.

She coughed again. "I think so."

"I'll take that as a yes, then."

"Where are we?" she asked, her voice scratchy.

"Some dungeon of sorts, I think," Blake Something answered.

Harper's eyes grew wide as the door opened and closed. A burly man walked in, holding two bowls of what looked to be soup.

"Harper Upton and Blake Gallo-Severide," the man said as he paced the small, dimly lit room. "I was just going for the girl, but picking up another royal at the same time, one that the family doesn't like, well, I'd say that's quite a catch."

"What do you want?" Blake spat.

"Oh, wow, quite a mouth on you for a royal, huh, boy? Well, since you asked, I didn't particularly want you; you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, but Harper here..." he trailed off and walked closer to Harper. He twirled a strand of her blonde hair, causing Harper to squeeze her eyes shut. "I needed her to get the king to agree to my demands."

Seeing as Harper was too terrified of this man to even speak, Blake took it upon himself to speak on her behalf. "You'll never be able to get King Halstead!" he yelled. "And, if you take her, there's no way in hell he'll give himself up!"

"Oh, but if I take the prince in exchange for Harper, then the king will give himself up for his brother. Funny how family works, isn't it? Now, here's your broth. Your hands are tied, so figure out how to eat it."

He let out a menacing laugh and then left the room, slamming the door shut with a loud thud.

"Do you know him?" Blake asked.

"No," Harper answered. "I have no idea who that it is. All I know is that he's going to hurt the only real family I've ever had." She paused. "And, you're a Severide? God, of all the people I had to get kidnapped with, it had to be you, didn't it?"

"Look," he started, "I know our families don't see eye to eye on how to treat their people--"

"Treat them?" she asked rhetorically. "Your family doesn't even help them! If there's a drought, you do nothing! A flood, you do nothing! You let your people starve when you could be helping them!"

"It's not me!" he yelled, but then quickly lowered his voice. "It's not me. It's my Grandpa Benny's rule. My mom and dad vowed to change things, but since he's still alive..." he trailed off.

"You can't do anything."

"Correct. Now, let's try to eat this soup, yeah?"

"But how? Our hands are tied."

Blake scooted himself across the floor and gripped the bowl with his tied hands. He could move his hands in the knot they were in, just not have them separate at the wrists. And, since his hands were bigger, he had no trouble wrapping his hands around part of the bowl. "Like this," he said.

Harper tried what he was doing, but since her hands were a lot smaller, it wasn't working. And, there's no way she'd be able to grip a spoon since her fists would just touch. The only thing the two could do was move their hands in and out since they were tied together at the wrists.

"C'mere, Princess," Blake beckoned.

"Why?" Harper asked.

"Well, you're hungry, aren't you?"

"Of course I am," she replied, still very confused.

"Move closer to me and I'll tip the broth into your mouth for you to sip. Fine by you, Princess?"

"I mean, I guess," she answered sheepishly and did her best to move closer to Blake.

Once she was close enough, he told her some more important things. "If you want me to put the bowl down, just tap the back of my hand twice." She nodded. "Ready, Princess?" She nodded again and he held the bowl up to her lips and slightly tipped it.

She sipped and never once had broth tasted so good. She was so hungry, as she had no idea how long she had been out or down in this dingy, dungeon-like area.

"I can promise you," Blake started after he and Harper were both finished with their broth, "that we'll get out of here."

"How can you promise that?" she asked, whipping her head towards him. "We don't even know where we are for Christ's sake!"

"Hey, my dad may be a prince and next in line for the throne, but he taught me a lot of things that might end up being useful in this very type of situation."

***

"What the fuck do you mean you haven't found anything yet?" Jay roared at three in the morning.

Hailey had finally fallen asleep from the pure exhaustion of crying her eyes out. Jay had had his arms wrapped around her in bed and hadn't slept at all, so he had untangled himself from her slowly and quietly enough that she didn't wake up, and made his way around the castle until he found Adam, Kevin, and Will talking in Will's study.

"Jay, calm down! We're working as hard as we can! Me and Kevin haven't slept in almost a day!" Adam said, trying to calm down his friend.

"Well, me either! God, how did this happen in the first place? I mean, I know, but how can you not find her? She couldn't have gotten that far, goddammit!"

"Everybody, just take a deep breath," Will said, commanding the room. Then, he turned to Jay. "Jay, I know you're frustrated because she's like a little sister to you--hell, she's like a little sister to me, too--but we can't do anything if Adam and Kevin don't get some sleep and let other guards take over--"

"So you're letting our two best guards sleep when Harper's missing? Unbelievable!" He threw his hands in the air.

"It'll be until sun up and then they'll be back helping the others," Will reassured his little brother. "But right now, what's best is for them is to sleep and let another head guard take over."

"Then give me all the information you've already gathered and let me lead the guards," Jay argued.

"That's not safe and you know it," Kevin said.

"He's right," Adam agreed. "Even if we did give you all the information we had, you'd still hit a dead end. And, you have battle training obviously, but not as extensive as we do. If they took Harper, that probably means that they want you and Will, so as Kevin said, it's not safe for you to go out and try to find her." He looked between Jay and Will. "That goes for both of you."

"Fine. Sleep why don't you. In the meantime, I'll look over these notes and maps and see if I can find anything."

"Jay--" Will began.

"No, Will! I know you're the king and all, but I was the one who pulled her out of that river ten years ago! I'll be damned if I let her die from this!"

***

"I got it! I fucking got it!" Jay yelled around six in the morning while he was working on his third cup of coffee and Will was half-asleep in his desk chair.

"How?" Will yawned. "How'd you figure it out when even our highly skilled guards couldn't?"

"I just, I remembered something, okay?"

"And that something is...?" Will trailed off.

"She was dancing with Kelly Severide's son when she was taken."

"Blake?"

"Yeah. So, they either tried to get into Severide's kingdom after they took the two or they're in ours or they're really close to Severide's."

"So they're in a place where they know we wouldn't look because it's not in our kingdom," Will said as he put the pieces together and sat up straighter in his chair, suddenly wide awake.

"Exactly."

"I'll go tell the guards."

***

"We're never gonna get out of here," Harper groaned as she and Blake tried their best to get some sleep with their backs against the stone wall.

"Never say never, Princess. Never say never," Blake said.

"Wow, didn't know you were a poet, too. Fantastic."

Harper closed her eyes again to try to get some sleep before they'd be woken up at god knows when to eat god knows what. At the same time, Blake was looking around the dungeon-like room for anything to help get them out of there.

He stood up, which caused Harper to open her eyes. "What are you doing?" she hissed.

"They missed a spoon when they brought the dinner dishes up," he answered as he sat down and then picked up the spoon with his hands which were still tied in front of him.

"How's a spoon going to help us?" Harper skeptically asked.

Blake moved closer to her, the spoon still in his hands. "Great question. I'm gonna get the end of  this spoon in the space between the knots to hopefully make it loose and then untie the knot."

"And how do you expect to do that with tied hands?"

"Wow, you're quite the pessimist, aren't you?"

"Sorry, when you listen to Jay and Will bicker all the time, the negativity kind of just happens."

Blake chuckled. "Whatever you say, Princess. Whatever you say." He paused. "And, to answer your question, I am going to get your ties off first, then you'll help me with mine."

"But I don't know how to do that!"

"Just watch me and hopefully that'll help. And, it's not that hard; you just stick the end of the spoon in a knot to make it loose. Pretty simple actually."

Harper raised her eyebrows but held out her hands to Blake despite her skepticism. He stuck the end of the spoon in the knot he thought was the loosest and twirled the spoon back and forth until the gap was big enough that he could fit a finger from each hand in and wiggle it. Then, he worked on the remaining knots.

Ten minutes later, Harper slid her hands out of the rope.

"You did it!" she whisper-yelled. "Now, time for me to get you out of here."

Blake told her the knot he thought would be the loosest and she got the end of the spoon in there and twirled, just like Blake did. With Blake talking her through the entire thing, she got the rope off his wrist in fifteen minutes. There was some fraying in his, but it was off nonetheless.

"What now?" Harper asked.

"See that window up there?" Blake asked as he pointed above the right of their heads. It wasn't much of a window, just a collection of bars that were bolted together and were bolted to the inside of the wall. Harper nodded. "Now, we tie the rope to the third of five bars so it's centered and we pull it off the wall."

"Rope? Against iron? I may be a woman, but even I know that iron is stronger than rope," Harper said.

"It's rusty," Blake pointed out. "Therefore, it should be easy to get off its hinges."

"And how do you propose we tie the rope to it since it's so high up?"

Blake squatted down. "Grab the rope and hop on my back, Princess."

"Fine. Just let me move these candles over here more so that I can actually see what I'm doing."

Harper moved the candles to either side of the window--on the floor of course--and then grabbed the less-frayed rope. Then, she got on Blake's back.

He boosted her up as high as he could, but she still had to stretch to tie the rope to that third bar on the window. Once she tied multiple knots that Blake deemed tight enough, only then did he put her back on her own two feet.

Then, he grabbed the slightly more frayed rope and tied it to the end of the other rope.

"Now, we have to pull hard. And, I want you in front of me because it'll work best if I'm in the back," Blake explained.

"But what if that grate hits me in the face?" Harper asked.

"Well, for starters, the minute it starts getting really loose, I'll tell you to get out of the way and I'll finish pulling it off. Secondly, when it comes off, I need to make sure it doesn't hit the floor, so I'm going to need to choke up on the rope when it starts getting really loose so that I can hold it and make sure it doesn't hit the floor."

"Okay, this is actually a pretty good plan. Who knew Prince Severide would be able to teach his son all this?"

"It's all--"

"I know, it's all Benny who's doing the things to your people. Now, let's get out of here. Maybe you can talk to Benny after this, but first, we need to get out of here before people wake up."

They positioned themselves on the rope, Harper in the front and Blake in the back. Then, they pulled, making their hands rope burned. But, at this point, neither of them cared; all they cared about was escaping wherever the hell they were.

Once Blake deemed it loose enough for Harper to let go, she did and stood off to the left. Then, he got closer on the rope and pulled. He heard the tell-tale creak of it only hanging on by one side.

He gave it one more pull...

Harper could've cheered when the grate came free of its bearings, giving them an out. But, she kept her mouth shut. Blake made sure to still be choking up on the rope so that it didn't hit the floor. It swung past Harper on her right side and towards the back of the dungeon-like room. But, she didn't know where it was on its backswing.

"Har--"

Harper felt a searing pain as the jagged edges of the grate ripped through the sleeve of her blue ballgown and into her tricep. She was about to cry out when she felt a hand clamp over her mouth.

"Don't scream," Blake whispered as he slowly lowered the rope connected to the grate to the ground, making sure that the grate barely made a noise as it hit the concrete.

Harper nodded with his hand still clamped around her mouth.

"I'm going to let go now," Blake warned. Harper nodded again.

Then, he removed his hand.

Harper bit down on her lip from the pain. She knew it was deep because she felt the blood trickling down her arm and heard the pitter-patter of blood droplets hitting the floor. Out of the corner of her eye, she also saw the sleeve of her ballgown was beginning to be stained a shade of crimson.

"So, how we're getting out of here," Blake began, "because we'll talk about that cut once you're out, is that I'm going to boost you up so that you can crawl out." He handed her the less frayed section of the rope after he untied it from the other section which was still connected to the grated window. "Then, you tie this to the first tree you see and toss the other end back down and I'll scale it and get myself out the window."

Harper clamped her left hand over her right tricep. "How do you--"

"Know how to scale a wall?" Blake asked. She nodded. "There's only so many ways you can sneak out of a castle and not get caught...also pretty sure my dad did that when he was a kid, so I guess it runs in the family."

"Okay," Harper said and removed her hand from her arm. "Let's get out of here."

Blake untied the section of rope and handed it to her. Then, she gingerly got on his back once more, being careful to use her right arm as little as possible. He walked forward and stopped in front of the window.

"You can do this, Princess," he encouraged.

With that, Harper pushed herself up and out of the dungeon-like wherever they were, and then started running, the rope trailing behind her.

She saw a tree to her left and ran towards it, cut arm forgotten because of all the adrenaline rushing through her veins. Then, she wrapped the rope around the tree and tied a few super tight knots.

She ran back to the window with the end of the rope.

"Coming down," she whisper-yelled to Blake and dropped the end of the rope down to him.

She watched as he effortlessly scaled the wall and pulled himself up and out the window.

"What do we do now?" Harper asked once he was out as well.

"Run," he answered.

So, Harper hiked up her blue ballgown and tried to keep up with him as the two of them ran to the left and to their safety.

***

Jay stared at the maps in front of him for what seemed like hours. He went back and forth over the map of the border between his and Severide's kingdoms (a few miles of each kingdom included on each side) and the map of Severide's kingdom. He had maps from fifty years ago, twenty years ago, ten years ago, and current maps spread out on Will's desk and on the floor. He was frantically trying to find any notable difference in any of the maps, frantically trying to find any place that Harper and Blake could be hidden away that no one thought existed anymore.

His eyes widened when he found a small difference in the map of the border: it was an old well that had been there ten years ago but wasn't there now. This meant that there was an old well worker's house near there that wasn't being used now, either.

Jay grabbed the pencil he had been using and quickly drew a circle around the well and the house.

"Will, Will! I think I got it!" he exclaimed.

"I'm awake, I'm awake," Will repeated from his chair where he had previously been half asleep. He rubbed his eyes and sat up straight and leaned towards his little brother. "What have you got now?"

Jay waved him over and the two leaned over the desk. "This," Jay said as he jabbed a finger at the map from ten years ago. "This well was there ten years ago, but it's not there now." He pointed to the empty spot on the map. "See?"

Will nodded. "And you think they took Harper there because it's close to the border."

"Exactly."

The door creaked as it was pushed open and Jay and Will immediately looked up.

"Hailey," Jay said and started towards her. "What are you doing awake? It's five in the morning."

"I'm well aware of the time, Jay. But, I couldn't sleep. I'm too worried."

She made her way over the desk and her eyes scanned the maps in front of the two royals. She furrowed her eyebrows.

Jay noticed how pensive she was. "What? You look like you're thinking pretty hard there."

"That well," Hailey began as she put her finger on the map right where that well was. "I know it."

"You do?" Will asked, now as intrigued as his brother.

Hailey nodded. "That was about half a mile (800 meters) from my house. My mother used to go down to get our water from there. But, they stopped using it because there was a new one built a few months before me and Harper came here." She paused. "You think that's where they're holding them?"

"I mean, it's plausible," Jay answered, not wanting to be the one to give her hope or give her disappointment. "It's five miles from the border, making it seven miles from the palace. They could force them to walk five miles in a day or during the night if they had to."

Hailey quickly started towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Jay asked, starting towards his wife.

"To get our coats. I know the area better than you, so I'm going with you and the guards to find Harper. And don't you dare tell me no. If it'll make you feel better, I'll even ride with Adam so that I'm safer."

Jay pursed his lips.

"You cannot be thinking about letting her go!" Will yelled and then received a stern look from Jay for yelling. "Sorry, sorry, Hailey," he quickly apologized. "And, neither of you or me for that matter, should be going. It's too dangerous."

"Will, we'll be okay. We'll bring multiple guards and me and Hailey will stay in the middle, so that way we won't be open targets. You, on the other hand, do need to stay here," Jay said.

"And let you two go alone...even with guards? No way! There's no way in hell, Jay!" He yelled this quieter than the last time so that he didn't receive a glare from Jay.

"Man, you're the king. You've probably got a bigger bounty on your head than me and Hailey, so please, for the love of all things holy, stay here."

"If you two go, make sure you both come back in one piece. And bring Harper back."

***

As Harper's eyes adjusted to the darkness of the night while she and Blake ran away from the place where they were being held captive, she thought she recognized where they were. She vaguely remembered seeing that well that they had just ran by. She and Hailey would come to it for a drink on a hot summer's day after being outside in the heat all day. In the winter, she remembers being cold while she carried a bucket maybe a quarter of the way full back home while her mother and Hailey each carried two buckets that had been practically full. But, Harper had been eager to help and their mother took any chance that she could get to get her children away from their abusive father.

"Wait," she said, which caused Blake to slow down so that Harper could catch up to him. The blood on her tricep was now oozing down onto her wrist and hand as her wound continued to bleed. "I know this place."

"You do?" Blake asked.

"I think so. I'm pretty sure this is where me and Hailey grew up before she got us out of there and we went to live with Will and Jay. It'd be a lot easier to know if we had a torch."

"I mean, I'm pretty sure I could make us one," Blake said.

"No, that's okay. We just need to walk close to the houses. Most of them should have fires lit for a bit of heat and light...that is, if I'm remembering right. That should help us until we find the right house."

"The right house? Princess, not to be rude, but what are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about us staying inside my old house until the morning if it's empty."

Blake cocked his head to the side. Harper's idea actually wasn't that bad. "Lead the way, Princess."

***

They were there: safety.

Blake put an arm out in front of him, silently telling Harper to stay behind him. Then, he pushed the old wooden door open. It wasn't that hard even though it did creak loudly due to all the rust on its hinges.

Then, he took a step inside and a few seconds later, beckoned for Harper to follow.

He walked over to the fireplace and swept a finger over the mantle, which caused his finger to be covered in dust. He waved his hand in the fireplace, gathering cobwebs all over his hand.

"I don't think this house has been used in years," he said. "Cobwebs are all over my hand from the fireplace."

"And they wouldn't be in there if someone had been lighting fires," Harper finished.

"Exactly." He felt around the mantle some more and then he felt what he was looking for: two candles and a box of matches. Most people left theirs on the mantle, and if this was Harper's family's old house, he was glad that they had done the same thing.

He fumbled with the box of matches until he got one out and then he struck it against the box and quickly used it to light the candles and then blew out the match and dropped it on the floor and crushed it with his foot.

He handed a candle to Harper but gasped at the same time.

"What?" she asked immediately. "What's wrong?"

"It's just that, you're really bleeding."

"Yeah, I know. But there's not much I can do about that right now." She turned her attention to where the door to the kitchen was and took a few steps closer. There, in that door, was the hole from the doorknob that Hailey had cut out all those years ago. "This is my old house."

"How do you know?"

"The hole in the door."

"How'd that happen?"

"That's a story for another day."

Blake nodded. "Fair enough. But for now we need to figure out how to stop that bleeding. How many layers are in that dress of yours, Princess?"

"Now, why would you need to know that, Prince?"

Blake chuckled. "I'm Prince now, huh?"

"You keep calling me Princess, so I figured it's only fair. But, why do you care so much about my dress?"

"I wanted to rip off a piece of the top layer and then tie it around your arm to hopefully stop the bleeding."

Harper sat down on the dirty floor and splayed her dress out in front of her. "Do it. It's really hurting."

Blake squatted down next to her. "You haven't complained once, though."

"Yeah, because we were running for our lives, Blake! I had more pressing matters to attend to!

Blake laughed. "Slow your roll, Princess." He set the candle down next to him and gently separated the first layer of the dress from the rest of the layers of the dress. Then, he made a tiny rip and paused and looked up at Harper. "Time to get that wound covered for the time being."

Then, all that could be heard between the two was Blake ripping a layer of fabric and then Harper grunting in pain when he tightly tied the strip of fabric around her right tricep.

***

The group of guards, along with the prince and princess, rode through the kingdom on horseback in the dead of night. Even though Hailey knew that the guards knew every inch of the kingdom inside and out, she still gave directions every once in a while.

They got to the old well and the old well worker's house.

"I'll stay here with two others," Adam said. "Kevin, you and the other four go inside and sweep the place. Go get Harper. Do whatever you have to do to get them back."

***

It felt like forever to Hailey and Jay, but it was only ten minutes. They heard yelling and sounds of things crashing to the floor and when they came out, they had three men with them.

"It looks like Harper and Blake escaped," Kevin announced. "We found these three bastards asleep and they didn't even realize they were gone."

"We just wanted change in our kingdom--" one started.

"Quiet!" Kevin boomed. "The only change you're gonna get is living in a dungeon the rest of your life. Now, did anyone help you besides these two? And I suggest that you don't lie to me or else I can easily make sure there's rats in there with you every single day."

"No," the man said and the two others shook their heads.

Adam waved his hand.

"We'll get them to the dungeon. We'll question them more once we're there."

Adam nodded and then Kevin and three other guards got the men on horseback and walked next to the horses so that they knew that the prisoners wouldn't escape. Then, they made their way back to the Halstead palace while Adam tried to figure out what to do next.

"Go half a mile that way," Hailey suggested as she pointed to the left.

"Princess, no disrespect, but why?" Adam asked.

"Our childhood home is that way. Maybe Harper and Blake went to stay there for the night."

"You heard her!" Jay ordered. "Go!"

***

Harper stiffened as she heard muffled voices coming from outside.

"You hear them, too?" Blake asked.

"Uh-huh," she confirmed.

He grabbed a candle and held it out in front of him. "Get behind me, Princess."

The door started to open slightly.

The minute Harper saw to stripe of color on the guard's boot, showing what kingdom she was from, she rushed out in front of Blake.

"Harper--"

"It's okay! It's okay! They're guards!"

When Hailey heard Harper's voice, she immediately jumped down from the horse, despite Adam trying to stop her.

"I don't care if it's not safe, Adam!" she argued. "Harper's in there, so I need to go!"

"I'll go with her," Jay said quickly and jumped off of his horse and quickly stood in front of Hailey.

The minute the two were in the door, Hailey rushed out from behind Jay and sprinted to her little sister.

"Oh thank God," she exclaimed and pulled Harper into a tight hug. "Thank God you're okay!"

Harper winced as Hailey's arm wrapped around the wound on her arm and squeezed. Hailey quickly pulled away.

Jay's eyes widened as he saw the wound on Harper's arm. The girl who he saw as a little sister was hurt...and he couldn't be sure who did it. While Hailey started to bend down to take a closer look at the ripped flesh, Jay took a giant step towards Blake.

"Did you do this?" he yelled.

"No, I--"

"Then explain to me! Explain to me what happened to her!"

"He didn't do it!" Harper yelled. Jay and Hailey looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue. "When we got out and got the grate off, when it came down, it hit me in the arm and cut me." She winced as Hailey lifted up the fabric that Blake had tied her arm off with. "Shit, this really hurts."

Normally, Jay or Hailey would scold her for her language, but given the circumstances, they both found it appropriate to swear.

"Does anything else hurt besides the arm?" Jay asked, seeing as Hailey was too worried about her sister to even speak. "Did they hurt you at all?"

"No, no they didn't. Just tied our wrists and kept us in this dingy dungeon place."

"Okay, well we should get you back." He turned to Blake. "We should get both of you back."

Blake nodded. "With all due respect Prince Jay, my family's palace is closer. Wouldn't it make more sense if we brought Harper there? Sylvie could stitch up her arm and she could rest there a few hours before you started back to your palace."

Hailey turned to Jay. "He does have a really good point."

He sighed. "Fine. But, I'm going back to our palace with one of the guards and then I'll meet you at Severide's. I want to know why this happened."

***

A few hours later, Harper's wound was fully stitched up and free from any bacteria thanks to Sylvie. Hailey was sipping coffee near her sister's bedside while Blake sat across from her, finally succumbing to sleep the same as Harper.

Jay, on the other hand, was just entering Severide's palace with Will in tow.

"Halsteads," Kelly said as Will and Jay, along with Kevin, entered Kelly's huge study. Benny was there, too. "Blake filled me in on what happened. God, that kid. From having his parents die in a fire and me and Stella taking him in, it's like he can't catch a break. We just wanted him to have a nice time at the ball last night and then all this happened."

Will cocked his head to the side and took a step forward. "Wait. So you knew that Blake went to the ball and that he still wasn't home and you didn't send guards out to search for him? Unbelievable."

Kelly held his hands up in surrender. "Hey, I thought the kid might be getting some action. Lord knows all three of us did after balls back in the day."

Benny cleared his throat, clearly not wanting to hear about his son's escapades.

"Did we get anything from the kidnappers?" Benny asked.

"First of all," Jay began, "we, didn't do anything. Kevin here did most of the work and yes he did get some answers." Jay took a step back. "Kevin, care to explain what they told you?"

"The three men that kidnapped Prince Gallo-Severide and Princess Halstead were from your kingdom," he said as he nodded towards Benny and Kelly. "They were angry that you weren't doing anything for your people, and since our palace is apparently easier to get in just because of the architecture, they decided to get into the ball, kidnap the princess to try to get to King Will here, and then hold him for ransom until either Prince or King Severide came to get him."

"And why would we--" Benny started, but his son quickly cut him off.

"Oh shut up, father! You know I'd do it!"

"I mean, I guess I can see it." Benny shrugged.

Will cleared his throat. "With that now explained, are you going to do anything to help your people? Because if this happened once, it could easily happen again. I'm not usually one to give in, but in these circumstances, you need to. Hell, you've needed to before Harper and Blake were kidnapped!"

"Don't you dare--"

"Father!" Kelly yelled. "Will's right! Things need to change! Not that you'd understand because you barely know how to run a kingdom, hence why ours has gone to utter shit. We need change and we need it now."

"I'm still the king!"

"And I don't give a damn! You were galavanting the world, leaving your people, our people to suffer and being a terrible ruler." Kelly took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "If you don't do this, I will side with the rebels so that they can get what they want."

"You wouldn't!"

"Oh, but I would. And, you know as well as me that I never back down."

Kelly and Benny stared at each other.

"So?" Jay asked. "What's it going to be?"

"Yes," Kelly agreed. "What is it going to be? Have a traitor for a son or be a good person and help the people of our kingdom?"

Benny threw his arms in the air. "Fine, fine! I'll do it! I'll start focusing more on our kingdom, starting by making sure that prices for food are reasonable so that everyone can have food."

"That's all I ask," Kelly said. He turned back to the two Halsteads. "Now, do you guys want to see Harper? I'm pretty sure Hailey and Blake are with her now, but I've got no problem bringing you two down there while my father sorts things out." He threw a glare towards his father and then quickly turned his attention back to Will and Jay.

"That'd be great," Jay said. "Thank you."

***

"Good morning," Blake whispered when he noticed that Harper was finally waking up. That girl slept a lot compared to how much he slept after their whole ordeal. "Or should I say afternoon," he chuckled.

"It was a long night," Harper said.

"Care to head back to our palace in a few hours?" Jay asked. "No offense, Blake, but I'm sure her bed would be more comfortable than an infirmary bed."

"No offense taken at all."

"I'm just so glad you're okay," Hailey said and reached for Harper's hand. She moved her gaze between both Blake and Harper. "I'm so glad that both of you are okay. And, according to Jay and Kelly, some good is going to come out of this in that Benny is going to try and help his people."

"Good," Harper said. Then, she turned to Blake. "Since I guess you're not so bad at all, Prince Blake, I hope to see you at the next ball?"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, Princess." Blake smiled.

"See?" Jay started. "I told you that you're a princess, Harper."

A/N: Sorry this has taken me so long to get out! School started and I had a couple of rough shifts at work, so I wasn't in the mood to write. I know it's not August, but I started this at the end of August, so I'm still counting this as part of AU-gust. Also, the picture at the top is from the Biltmore House/Mansion that I visited in mid-August. (I took the picture.) Anyway, thank you so much for reading! And, please remember to like/reblog, comment, and send me asks! I love hearing what you guys think! As always, if you want to be added to my taglist, just tell me and I’ll add you.

taglist: @theambracer88 @virtualreader @kelelas-life @celyndavies @brookerz122493 @musicismyescape27 @anotherfan07 @thexplosivegirl @dreamingwithlens @xoxmariaxox @onechicago18 @iamasimpingh0e @i-like-sparkly-things @herecomesthewriterwitch @liampayne88

[anna-justice]

come back (be here)

part one of upstead: but make it taylor swift

summary: I guess you're in New York today, I don't wanna need you this way (or: hailey is in new york and jay misses her more than you could ever imagine). read on ao3

…

and this is when the feeling sinks in, I don't wanna miss you like this,

come back...be here, 

come back...be here

I guess you're in New York today, I don't wanna need you this way,

come back...be here,

come back...be here

taxi cabs and busy streets,

that never bring you back to me,

I can't help but wish you took me with you

this is falling in love in the cruelest way,

this is falling for you and you are worlds away,

in New York, be here

~ come back...be here by taylor swift

…

day one

It had been 12 hours since Jay dropped her off at the airport, 12 hours since she gave him a teary smile and jumped out of the cab, 12 hours since he watched her disappear behind the glass doors, and it felt like it had been forever. 

He walked in the district with a new darkness looming over his head, he felt like a storm cloud was following him around. It had only been 12 hours, but he already felt like the life had been sucked out of him. He loved his job, he loved his team, but there was something missing and he couldn’t shake it. He wasn’t sure he would until she was sitting in front of him again. 

As he climbed the stairs to the bullpen - ignoring the knowing look from his desk sergeant - he gave the room a once over. It was like he was taken back in time. The familiar feeling of dread settling in his stomach as he ascended the stairs alone, it had been many years since he felt a similar sense of loneliness. 

Erin was an afterthought now, but in that moment he felt like a child again. The same dumb kid who lied and slept with his “informants,” who always took it too far and leaped before he even thought to look. He hadn’t been that person in a long time, not since Hailey. He still leaped but now he had someone who took the jump with him and she always made sure that he looked first. There was part of him that was scared with her gone, he would have no one to keep him from falling off the deep end. 

“Earth to Halstead.” He heard and then was startled by a hand waving in front of his face. He picked his head up out of his hands and laid back into his chair, feigning a stretch. “You good man? You look like death.” It was Kevin, who had a tiny smirk on his face. 

Jay nodded, chuckling nervously. “Yeah, uh, just didn’t sleep well.” 

Kim stifled a laugh across the room, Vanessa gave him a knowing look  and Adam shook his head, leaning on his desk. “Yeah, okay…” He waltzed across the room to Jay and Kevin, motioning to Hailey’s empty desk, “She have an okay flight?” He asked, knowing that Jay knew.

It caught him off guard, he wasn’t lying about not sleeping well, but he didn’t say that it was because he stayed up all night waiting for Hailey to say that she made it safely to her hotel. He nodded, “Yeah, she landed at like 3:00 this morning, said the room they put her up in was nice.” 

“Good,” Kevin said, nudging Jay’s shoulder. “Glad they are taking care of our girl.” The words made Jay crack a smile, the first one since he had bid Hailey goodbye the night before. 

He glanced at the empty desk again, picking up his phone and snapping a picture of it. He clicked on his partner’s contact info and drafted a text. 

Jay: My pens miss you. 

It was short, and could be taken as sweet, but it was still enough to make his heart beat a little faster as he hit send. The nerves started to set in immediately after he flipped his phone over. Everyone in the room knew that Hailey would reach across their computer screens to steal a pen or pencil whenever she needed, hers were lost as soon as she got them: whether they had fallen from behind her ear or were dropped on the floor. She never had one, but Jay found himself worried that she would think it was a little weird that he had noticed all those things too. 

His phone buzzed against the fake wood not long after, and he turned it over a little faster than he would like to admit. 

Hailey: I miss them too, you buy the good kind. 

A grin across his face as soon as he read it, and he coughed out a subtle laugh. For a second - only a second - he let himself pretend they weren’t talking about pens, but they were. 

Jay: Have a good day :) 

Her response came almost immediately. 

Hailey: You too Jay :)

He leaned back in seat, sighing. It wasn’t the same as watching her from across their desks or clearing a scene together, or even just hearing her voice. But, it was the first day, he needed to pace himself. There would be plenty of time to miss her, and for now, this was enough.

day two

Jay poured himself another cup of coffee, he hadn’t been able to focus all day. He was telling everyone else that he had a headache, but he knew it was from Hailey’s words still ringing in his head. 

“I miss the wind, and you.” 

It was literally all he could think about since their conversation early that morning as they both walked into work - unfortunately - 800 miles apart. He would admit, it was much better than his lonely walk into the district the day before, it was almost like she was with him, but not close enough. 

He took a big sip of his coffee, pinching the bridge of his nose (okay, so maybe he really did have a headache). The bullpen was buzzing, everyone else seemingly unaffected by his partner’s absence. He made his way back towards his desk, dodging Kevin, who scored against Adam in their game of trashketball (their favorite pass times on slow days). 

“You wanna play the winner?” Kevin asked, stepping back for Adam to make a free throw (Kim called a foul). 

Jay shook his head, “Nah man, I’m good.” He stood over her desk, staring down at the stack of files that were left there. She was gone in such a hurry that she didn’t even get the chance to clean it off. He picked up the one on top, pretending to read it. 

“Hey,” He heard from behind him. He flinched, spinning to face the brunette behind him. “You good?” Vanessa asked. 

Jay sighed, “Uh, yeah, just looking at Hailey’s paperwork. It needs to be filed.” He threw the folder back down and leaned against it. “I just hope it’s done.” He joked weakly. 

Vanessa looked down at the pile and smirked at him, laying a hand over the top. “I’m sure it is, it’s not like Hailey to leave unfinished business.” Jay didn’t dare raise his gaze to look at her, he knew there was shock written all over his face. Not that he should be surprised, it wasn’t like Vanessa to beat around the bush. 

Maybe he was reading into things, but he was almost 100% sure they weren’t talking about paperwork. He laughed it off, “Yeah, she always finishes before me and then proof reads mine. She doesn’t trust me to do it right.” 

The brunette shook her head, chuckling with him. She shrugged, “Or maybe it’s just an excuse to spend time with you.” With that she waltzed into the break room, throwing a wink over her shoulder at a stunned Jay. 

He wasn’t one to talk about his feelings (or really even acknowledge them) and the thought of being as open as Vanessa had just been was making him want to vomit. It was so easy for her to throw that at him - that Hailey likes spending time with him - why was it so hard for him to say it? It’s not like he didn’t know, she did too, they were each other’s favorite people. It had just ever been said so directly. 

His feet carried him faster than his brain could catch up and he followed Vanessa, closing the door behind him. “What Jay?” She asked, without even turning around. 

Jay took a breath, he hadn’t really thought about what to say here, but he needed something. It had only been two days, but he was going crazy. He missed her like crazy. “You are being cryptic.” 

“Actually,” Vanessa said, turning to face him. “I’m being the opposite of cryptic.”

Jay shook his head, “Really? I don’t think so. I just feel like I’m reading into what you are saying or that you are implying something-”

“I’m gonna stop you right there, before you completely eat your own foot.” She smiled softly, “I’m not implying or saying anything Jay. I’m just saying that it’s okay to miss her and it’s okay to worry about her, she’s your partner. You’ve got to have her back.” She winked at him and headed for the door, “Just, don’t be afraid to tell her that. Tell her what you are feeling.” 

After she left the room, Jay let out a sigh. He muttered under his breath, “And she says she’s not being cryptic.” But, even if Vanessa was talking in riddles, she was right. He pulled out his phone and clicked on her name. 

Jay: Just so you know, I miss you too. A lot. 

The typing bubble appeared on the screen seconds later.

Hailey: Me too. A lot. 

day three

The third day was Tuesday, which was the day that he and Hailey normally had off, just not from each other. They would meet at her place at eight and go to the gym together then grab breakfast, then from there it was a toss up depending on each of their days. However, almost every time they ended up at the shooting range. Today was no different. 

Jay left his apartment 10 minutes later than normal, arriving at their gym alone at 8:15. It was weird walking in alone. Sure, he went to workout plenty without her, but never on a Tuesday, never at that time of day and never at that gym. There was one right around the corner from his apartment, but Hailey was weird about working out in front of people and she felt more comfortable on her own, so he just got another membership. He never really thought anything of it.

Not until now, walking into Hailey’s gym alone felt wrong. But, what felt worse was that it hadn’t even accrued to him to just go to his own. No, Tuesday’s were different, and he liked them. He just wasn’t sure if he liked them without her.

He walked in, ran several miles on the treadmill and had moved to the weight station when a random girl approached him. He continued his reps as he noticed her making her way towards him. “Hey macho,” She said, smiling brightly, “You mind spotting me?” 

Jay looked around him - he was kind of in the middle of something - but he didn’t really mind. So, he shrugged and set his weight down before following her. 

She laid down on the bench and positioned herself under the metal bar, signaling to Jay to help her lift it off. She lowered it slowly, taking a breath before pushing it back up, “So,” She huffed, “Where’s your girlfriend?” 

Jay’s eyebrows laced together, “I don’t have a girlfriend.” He said matter of factly. 

“Then who is that blonde girl you are always here with?” She asked, starting to struggle at pushing the bar back up. 

Jay realized two things. One: this girl had been watching him for a bit and decided to make a move when his “girlfriend” wasn’t around. That’s off putting. And two: she thought Hailey was his girlfriend, and that made him smile. “That’s my partner, I’m a cop. Detective really.” 

He caught the bar with ease as she lost steam, watching her cautiously as she sat up. “Good to know.” She grabbed her water bottle from beside the bench and gave him a smirk, “Thank you.” Jay gave her a short nod before retreating back to his bench, he was ready to be done and get out of there.

About 30 minutes later, Jay walked into the locker room to grab his bag from his locker, when he got there, there was a note taped to the door. 

If that really isn’t your girlfriend, give me a call ;) 

~ Maddie (xxx-xxx-xxxx) 

Jay peeled it off and shook his head before grabbing his grab, tossing it in the trash as he left the room. He made his way to his truck, figuring he had time to shower at home before heading to the shooting range. He and Hailey hadn’t been in a few weeks, and he was due for recertification (honestly, he didn’t even know why they bothered, he got a perfect score everytime). 

About an hour later he was on his way there, and the familiar drive felt strange coming from a different place. If he was being honest, everything felt strange. 

When he pulled in the parking lot, he parked in his normal spot and jumped out. It was almost never busy at 10 on a Tuesday. He looked up and took in the sign out front The Old Chicago Range, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and snapped a picture, sending it to Hailey. 

Jay: Be jealous :)

As he pulled the door open, he met familiar faces. That was their favorite thing about this place. He would admit, maybe a shooting range isn’t exactly the kind of family business you would want to pass down, but it had worked for the owners. The same four men had been working there for the past three years, and long before Hailey and Jay started going there. The place was relatively small, but they were always in great company. It was owned by 2 brothers and their cousins, whose fathers had passed it to them. All of them were ex-military or retired CPD officers, so Jay felt right at home. 

“Jay!” One of the brothers, Robbie, said from behind the counter. He jumped out of his seat and rounded it to shake Jay’s hand. 

Jay took it, squeezing it firmly, the way they were both taught. “Hey Rob, good to see you.” 

The older man headed back towards the computer, “Same as always?” He asked.

He almost said yes, but then he realized Hailey wasn’t getting their guns out of the truck. “No, uh, just me today.” 

Robbie looked up, it seemed a little dramatic, but they had never come without each other before. “Oh, is everything alright?” 

Jay quickly jumped in, “Yeah, Hailey is just on assignment in New York, she’ll be back soon.” As soon as the words left his mouth he regretted saying them. Would she be back soon?

“Well good,” Robbie said. “You wanna go try out the new glock?”

“Hell yeah.” 

Jay followed Robbie through the narrow hallway and to the back where the actual indoor range was, feeling his phone buzz in his pocket. 

Hailey: Don’t worry, I am

Hailey: Are you taking your side partner to our place??

Jay chuckled to himself, trying to control his heartbeat. Our place. Their place. He liked the thought of that, a lot.

Jay: No, never

Hailey: Good

Hailey: Don’t have too much fun without me

Jay: Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to send you a picture of my perfect score

Hailey: Yeah ok whatever

They made it to the window and Jay was about to put his phone away when it buzzed again. 

Hailey: Text me when you’re done

Jay: I will

He smiled bigger, ignoring Robbie’s and now his brother Tim’s sideways glances. He picked up the headphones and secured them, taking the gun in his hand and watched the marker slide back to the other end of the room. Jay raised the gun and fired the first shot, picturing what he always did.

When he was in Ranger training and long after, they were taught to kill with no remorse. That was their job: to take out the enemy to save the masses. But, Jay had never been good at taking a life, innocent or not. They had trained them to have no emotional attachment, they were going after combattants, terrorists, truly horrible people in the eyes of all soldiers, but it didn’t matter. Jay had a big heart, even if he didn’t show it, so he came up with his own way to cope. 

Maybe it was unhealthy, but every time he had to shoot his gun overseas, he would imagine that his mom’s life was at risk, that she was the one in danger, not him or anyone else. And that made it easier, in the moment, at least. Somewhere along the way, he stopped imagining his mom and he started imagining Hailey. She was something that he would protect at all costs, no questions asked. 

When he finished, the marker slid forward so he could see, and much to his surprise, he scored a 99. Something that hadn’t happened since before Erin left, he was stunned. Jay didn’t care about the score, but something deep in his chest was making him squirm. Was he really this much of a mess without her? 

When he got back to his truck a little while later, he pulled out his phone, texting his partner. 

Jay: You missed out, the new glock they got in is a beauty

Hailey: I’ll have to try it when I get back

Jay took a deep breath, she’s coming back, she’s coming back, she’s coming back. Even she knows that, why couldn’t he get that through his head.

Jay: For sure

Hailey: So, no score gloating?

Jay: Not today, I got a 99

Hailey: WHAT

Hailey: That’s never happened 

Jay: Yeah, I know

Jay: Something was missing.

day four

Jay poured over the set of photos and stacks of reports for the third or fourth time, he didn’t find anything, but there was no way he wasn’t missing something. He needed another set of eyes, he needed Hailey’s eyes. 

It was just him and Trudy left, not that Trudy ever really went home when Mouch was on shift, everyone else had taken their frustration over the case in stride and gone home, but Jay couldn’t let it go. 

They were stuck on a string of robberies involving department stores, with multiple casualties, some of them kids. They just couldn’t find the connection between the stores. They were scattered all across the district, sold different things and nothing specific was ever stolen. And the crew, they were ruthless, they didn’t care who got hurt, if they were in the way, they were taken out. 

Jay heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs, perking up in his seat. It was Trudy with a white takeout box in her hand. “Serge.” Jay said, smiling, “Have I told you lately that you’re my favorite person in the world?” 

“Haha,” Trudy laughed, giving him a faked stink eye. “No you have not, but it’s a good thing Upton’s not here to hear you say that.” She joked. 

She watched Jay’s face fall immediately, “Good thing.” He said with a forced smile. 

Trudy sat the box down on his desk and perched herself on Hailey’s empty one across from him. “You miss her don’t you?” She asked, a small smirk playing on her lips. 

Jay sighed, leaning back in his chair. “Of course I do.” He said, the words tumbling out of his mouth with ease. Trudy’s smirk grew and Jay just shrugged, “She’s my partner.” 

Trudy stood, taking in the man that she had watched grow so much. She couldn’t explain the amount of pride she felt when she thought of the men and women in intelligence. She and Mouch didn’t get the chance to have their own children, so she always saw Hank’s unit as her own little family. She was proud of Jay especially, he had turned into an incredible cop and an even better man. She rested a hand on his shoulder, “Yeah, I know.” She sighed, “Go home soon okay? Get some sleep.” 

“Yes ma’am,” He said, squeezing her hand. As Trudy headed for the stairs, Jay watched her go. He wasn’t sure when it happened, but Trudy became someone that he could really count on. And she was the closest thing he had to a mom, and he really needed his mom right now. “Hey Trudy.” He called and she spun around. 

“Yeah,” She said. 

Jay shook his head a bit, his voice coming out quiet, “She’s coming back right?” 

Trudy was taken aback by Jay’s forwardness, and she wished she had an answer for him, but she didn’t. The feds had a way of holding on to good people, and Hailey was the best. But for all their sakes, especially his, she hoped Hailey would come home, despite the fancy suits, despite the better pay and the sleek and shiny offices, she hoped she would choose Chicago. But she couldn’t really say that to Jay. “She better, she owes me a bottle of Tequila.” 

That got Jay to laugh a bit, looking down at his desk as he smiled, remembering the bet that Hailey lost one day when they were all Tailgating a few months before, she had yet to pay up. “Yeah, she does. Thanks Serge.” 

“Anytime,” Trudy said, “Goodnight Chuckles.” She joked, and then she was gone. 

Jay set the box to the side, no longer feeling like eating. His stomach was in knots. He returned to his previous position, pouring over the files once again. He couldn’t figure out what he was missing. 

He caught sight of his phone on his desk, making a split second decision and calling his partner. She answered on the third ring. “Hello?”

“Hey,” He said, just enjoying hearing her voice for a moment. He snapped out of it, “How’s working with the feds?” Is it wrong that a small part of him wanted her to say that she hated it.

“Good.” She said quickly. “Different, but good.” Jay heard a door click over the line. “Actually, you have great timing. I was getting off the elevator when you called me.” 

Jay glanced at the clock on his monitor, it read 12:04. “Damn, that’s late.” 

“Yeah, anyway. What’s up?” She asked. Suddenly, Jay felt bad asking her for help, she had just finished her day and she probably needed sleep. “Jay?” 

“Oh, uh, I was just gonna ask for your opinion on a case, but you need sleep. I’ll let you-”

“No.” Hailey said, cutting him off. “I’m wired, I won’t be able to sleep, it’s been a crazy night. What do you need?” 

Great. A crazy night. They were probably doing a big raid or something else with their big budget and fancy tech stuff. And Hailey was probably really good at it. “I just can’t find the connection between the stores in this string of robberies. People are dying, we’re running out of time.” 

“Do you have the digital files?” She asked. 

“Yeah.”

“Alright, send them to me. I’ll call you back.” 

Jay did what he was told and not even five minutes later, she called him back. But this time, it was a facetime notification. Jay cautiously slid it open, immediately taking in Hailey’s appearance. She had her phone propped up facing her as she sat on a bed in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt with her computer in lap. “Hey.” Jay said, propping his up on his monitor.

“Hey.” She said back, smiling her big, bright, Hailey smile that he didn’t realize he missed so much. It had only been four days, he really needed to pull it together. They stared at each other for a moment, before Hailey visibly tensed. “So, run me through the facts.” 

So he did, he talked her through the case while she looked through photos and reports. Jay was hoping that he would think of something as he explained it all, but he didn’t. 

After a few minutes or silence, Hailey spoke up, “Did you check the security companies?” 

“Yeah, they all use different ones.” He said.

“Ok,” Hailey said, “Wait, check and see if there is some sort of backing. Like a mother company or something.” 

Jay typed for a while before shouting, “Bingo!” He smiled at her through the phone, “Hailey, you got it. They are all financed partially by Graham Consolidated, a big tech company.” 

“Perfect, so what do you think? Personal vendetta against the CEO/Company and they are coming after it’s partners? Maybe it’s Graham’s way of completely taking over the smaller companies?” Hailey said, throwing out ideas.

Jay shrugged, a smile still on his face. “I don’t know, but now I have a place to start. Thank you.” 

“Of course, anytime.” She said. There was a beat. “I really miss you guys, I wasn’t kidding when I said it’s different here.” 

“We - he should have said I - miss you too.” He couldn't help himself, “Different, as in bad?”

Hailey shrugged, trying to find the words, “I don’t know, it’s just more structured. More rules potentially break, but -” She stopped for a second, taking him in and deciding if she really wanted to tell him this. She didn’t want him to look at her any differently. “- maybe that was the point, I guess it need it.” 

She needed it? How could he compete with that? Maybe she was reconsidering her decision, it had only been four days. Jay smiled weakly, “Well, they are lucky to have you.” He said, genuinely.

“Thanks.” She said softly, looking a little disappointed. Had she wanted him to tell her that she better come home? Does she want him to tell her he couldn’t live without her? No way, he couldn’t. A job with the FBI is a big deal, and Hailey was definitely on the path of being offered one. He couldn't get in the way of that. 

Jay took a breath, “I should go. I’ve got lots to do.” He said, forcing a smile. 

“Yeah, ok.” Hailey said, “Goodnight Jay, go home soon.” 

“Goodnight Hailey.” Come home soon. 

day five

“Contrary to popular belief Jay, your body is not bulletproof.” Will said, pressing the bandage flush against his brother's arm. 

Jay rolled his eyes, sighing, “It barely grazed me, there won’t even be a scar…” 

Will huffed, standing straighter and glaring at his brother, he looked at Kim who was standing in the corner of the room. “Hey Kim, when was the last time Jay got shot?”

Kim feigned inquiry, tapping her chin with her finger. “Oh, I don’t know, not even six months ago?” She said, a bit too aggressively. 

“You guys are being dramatic. I’m fine.” Jay insisted. 

“Jay!” Will snapped, “You have gotten shot twice in the past six months. Three times in two years! That’s not normal!” He was obviously frustrated, running his hand through his hair. He didn’t understand what Jay didn’t get, they were all each other had. “You’re not bulletproof, you’re like a damn bullet magnet.” 

Jay held up his hands, “Ok, now you’re being ridiculous -” He was cut off by his phone buzzing on the bed next to him, he picked it up glaring at his brother and temporary partner. The ID ready Hailey Upton. “Which one of you told?” He snapped. Will and Kim both held their hand up in surrender before backing out of the room to give Jay some privacy,  neither of them had spilled the beans. Jay sighed, hitting the green button and answering. “Hey.” 

He was expecting her to scream at him, to be angry, but instead, “Thank God you’re okay.” She sighed out, Jay was taken aback. 

“Yeah Hailey, I’m okay.” 

He heard her soft sniffles over the line. Had she been crying? He felt a pang of guilt in his chest at the thought. “I just got back to the office and I had a text from Adam that just said “Jay got shot” and he wasn’t answering and all I could think about was last time, and -” She stopped herself, taking a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter, I-I was just worried.”

“I’m fine, I promise.” Jay said calmly, sensing her panic even 800 miles away. 

“Okay,” She said, sounding defeated. “What happened?” 

Jay shrugged, immediately regretting it. He would never admit it out loud, but his arm was really sore. “It was a run of the mill shoot out, I just jumped out of the way too slow. It just grazed my arm, there was barely any blood.” That was a lie, there was a lot of blood. He had to change his clothes, they were pretty much ruined. 

He wasn’t sure what he was trying to do by omitting how bad it could have been, maybe he was protecting her, but he couldn’t bear her blaming herself for this. He knew he would. If he was stuck in New York and Hailey got hurt in Chicago without him there to back, he would blame himself too. “Which arm?” She asked quickly. 

“Left.” He sighed out, hoping that maybe she would ignore it.

“Jay!” She shouted, “You aren’t even done with PT for your left shoulder!”

“Hailey.” He said, only slightly mocking her, “The bad guys don’t have a copy of my line of duty injuries report.” 

He heard her stifle a laugh and he smiled to himself. Bingo. He knew she wasn’t really mad at him, she was just worried. He would have reacted the exact same way. “Okay, fair enough. But, seriously, you have to be more careful.” There was a beat, “I don’t know what I would do without you.” 

Jay literally felt his heart stop in his chest. He didn’t know what he would do without her either, and this was the closest he ever wanted to be to finding out. “Hailey, you won’t have to find out. I’m not going anywhere.”

Hailey sighed audibly, “You can’t promise me that.” 

“No, but I can sure as hell try.” He joked.

That earned a laugh from her, causing a small smile to grace his face. “Yeah, you better.” They sat there in silence for a while, finding comfort in only the assurance of the other one's presence. “Don’t scare me like that again.” 

“I won’t Hailes.” Jay couldn’t put his finger on it, but something about this felt different than the last time. He thought back to the day he was released, what his phone had interrupted. It seemed kind of ironic how they were having all of their important conversations that way now. The words were different, but the rest was the same. The pain in her voice, the fear, it made everything all too real. It terrified him, because maybe - just maybe - she needed him just as much as he needed her.

Maybe there was a chance for them after all.

day six

By the next night, Jay was so exhausted that he was sure he would fall asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. His arm was still sore and he had slept terribly the night before. The shooting, however minor it was, had done a number on him. Nightmares of Hailey being shot plagued his mind all night long.

He had just turned out his light when his phone buzzed on the bedside table, he silently prayed that they hadn’t caught a case. When he flipped it over, he saw it wasn’t from his boss, but from his partner. 

Hailey: Facetime?

Jay was a little embarrassed by how fast he clicked the call button, all his tiredness being thrown out the window, but he would be a fool to waste her forwardness. She picked up on the first ring. “Eager aren’t we?” 

Jay was going something clever back, but he was startled by how beautiful she looked in the shitty hotel lighting. He reached over and switched his lamp on, pretending not to notice the shocked look on Hailey’s face when she realized he was shirtless. However, her gaze didn’t shift away. “See something you like, Upton?” 

Hailey smirked, taking his jab in stride, “What if I say yes?” 

Jay smiled big. Was she flirting with him? “Then I would tell you that I see something I like too.” 

Hailey blushed and Jay’s grin grew three sizes, he wanted to make that happen again, and again, and again. “Good to know.” Her expression softened when she noticed the bandage on his left arm, “How’s your arm?”

Jay shrugged, “Sore, but fine.” She didn’t look convinced. “Hailey, look at me.” She lifted her gaze from her lap, to his eyes on the screen. “I’m okay.” 

She nodded, “Good.” 

“Is everything okay?” He asked, not that he didn’t enjoy it, but he was a little confused on why she had asked him to facetime out of the blue. 

She nodded again, “Yeah actually, everything’s great...I just miss you.” 

“I miss you too Hailes.” He wasn’t exactly sure when he started calling her that, but he liked it a lot. It felt special, like a step forward. “Have you heard anything about coming home?” He knew it was a loaded question, but he was practicing self preservation. If she was changing her mind and staying, he needed time to prepare, no matter how unlikely it was. 

Hailey shrugged, “I don’t know, at least a few more weeks. The girl whose spot I’m in is deep undercover, so we don’t exactly have a timeline.” 

“Okay.”

“I hope it’s soon though, if that counts for anything.” She said quietly. 

“It does,” Jay said, letting out a breath. “A lot actually.” 

“I need to come home, I don’t know how much more of this wheat thin style pizza I can take.” 

Jay laughed out loud, “Oh I get it, you don’t miss me, you just miss deep dish.”

“Finally, it took you long enough.” She said, joking with him. Jay pressed a hand to his chest, feigning being offended. Hailey grinned, rolling over on her side and resting her phone against the pillow next to her. “Shut up, you know I miss you.” 

Jay smiled softly, giving her a small nod of understanding. He did know she missed him, and he missed her like crazy too. He looked into her bright blue eyes, “I wish you took me with you.” He said. 

He could tell he caught her off guard, the shocked expression on her face said it all, and he almost regretted saying it, but not quite. He meant it with his whole heart. “Me too.” She said finally. “OA’s great, but...but he’s not you Jay.” She shook her head, smiling softly to herself. “There’s no one else like you.”

Jay’s heart was pounding in his chest at her words, he was half convinced he was dreaming. “Well that’s good, there’s only enough room for one partner in your life, and I intend on keeping the spot.”

“You better,” She said, staring at him shamelessly. “I don’t want anyone else.” 

“I don’t want anyone else either.” In any way, he thought. 

“Come to New York.” She said quickly, a nervous expression crossing her face for a split second as he watched her realize what she just said. 

Jay cocked an eyebrow, “What?” He breathed out.

“Come to New York.” She said again, this time with more confidence. 

“Are you sure?” He asked, and it felt like the simple question meant so much more. Are you sure this is what you want? Are you sure you want me there? Are you sure that you want me too?

Hailey nodded, “Yes. Buy the ticket Jay.” She said, “Be here.” 

“Okay.”

day seven

Jay felt like his heart was going to jump out of his chest as he walked to baggage claim. 

The last 12 hours had been quite the whirlwind. He had texted Voight immediately after he hung up with Hailey asking for the next day off. Thankfully he had said yes, and Jay booked the next flight that wasn’t full. It left O’Hare at 12:15 the next day. 

He couldn’t believe what he was doing, flying to New York to see Hailey. It had only been a week and he was buying an overpriced plane ticket? He really did have it bad. 

It wasn’t lost on him how familiar the situation was, losing a partner, a friend, someone he loved to the city, to the FBI even. He knew the feeling well, but his walk through the crowded terminal proved to him just how much things had changed. He never bought a ticket to see Erin, not after a week, not after a month, never. The thought never really even crossed his mind. She was gone and that was that, time to move on. But not with Hailey. 

Hailey was different, the thought moving on, the thought of forgetting her ripped through him like a knife. He wasn’t sure he’d survive without her. And even though it had only been seven days, he was ecstatic to see her. He missed watching her blonde ponytail swing as she walked, he missed her telling him his handwriting sucked, he missed never having any pens, he missed her laugh, her voice, her smile (well that he had seen, but it’s not the same). He missed everything about her. 

His flight landed around three, and he was meeting Hailey at her hotel. She had told the front desk to leave him a key to let himself in, and that she would be there as soon as she could. She couldn’t exactly ask for time off when she had only been there a few days.

Jay had decided on the plan that he was going to tell her how he felt, he owed it to himself to put himself out there again, and he couldn’t pretend that she was just his partner anymore. They both knew that they were more than that. However, when he made that decision, he thought he was going to have hours to decide what he was going to say. Not the 30 seconds it was going to take to walk over to the petite blonde woman holding a sign that read Jay Halstead.

He was taken aback, letting his mouth fall open as he stifled a laugh. She had surprised him. He was barely ten feet away when Hailey abandoned her sign and ran to wrap her arms around him. The closest that had been to each other since he had tackled her down in the surveillance van, almost a year before. “Hi Jay.” She said, her voice loud and clear without the static in between them.

“Hi Hailes.” He said, hugging her tightly to him. Definitely something he could get used to. 

Eventually - and much to his dismay - she took a step back, nervously pushing a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “How was your flight?” She asked.

“Good, went by fast.” Not true, it was painfully slow, the anticipation was too much. “Thanks for picking me up.” He said. 

“Of course. What are partners for?” She joked, rocking back and forth on her heels. 

Jay laughed, “I don’t think Kim would ever pick me up from the airport.” 

Hailey shrugged, smirking, “I guess it’s a good thing that she’s only your temporary partner then. I’m obviously the better one.” 

“Yeah, you are.” Jay tried not to show his disappointment on his face, but he was really starting to hate the word partner. It was just a constant reminder that that was all he was, her partner. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, he wasn’t someone to daydream about passionate first kisses in airports or running down a terminal to greet someone, but for some reason he thought that now was their moment. Maybe he was wrong. 

Jay watched at Hailey’s face mirroring his own, realizing he was thinking the same thing she was. Won’t he just say it already. But she knew him better than that, she knew that he was too stuck in his own head to ever say what he was really feeling. He could never find the words to describe it, and that had been what was different all week. The 800 miles between them gave him an edge, something to use to keep her at an arm's length but still let her in. He was the most open he had ever been about his feelings with her this past week, and she wasn’t ready for that to be over. She never wanted it to stop. 

So, she did the only thing she could. “Jay,” She said quietly, taking a step forward. “You have to know that it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you as just my partner.” 

It took him a moment to process what she said, but once he did, he swept down and pulled her into his arms, pressing his lips to hers. Her hand cupped his neck as he gently held her up, a hand snaking around her waist. There they were, having a passionate first kiss in the middle of baggage claim, no doubt scandalizing everyone around them, but they didn’t care. All that mattered was each other. 

Hailey pulled away breathless, resting her forehead against his. “I missed you so much.” She said quietly, wiping the stray tear that had fallen off her cheek. She was feeling a little overwhelmed by her emotions. 

Jay smiled, leaning down to kiss her once again. “I missed you too, so much.” He pecked her cheek, making her smile. “I never want to miss you like that again, especially now.” She eyed her suggestively.

Hailey laughed against his chest, “Just a few more weeks.”

“It’s not fair,” He said quietly, running his thumb over her cheek, “That I have to leave tomorrow, after this.” 

“Well,” Hailey said, intertwining their hands, “That's tomorrow's problem.” 

“I like the way you think.” He said.

Hailey reached up, kissing him gently, “Then let’s get out of here.” 

The two of them walked out of JFK hand in hand, hailing a taxi and climbing in together. The action was foreign, and so was the city, it wasn’t what either of them wanted. But being there together, even if it was just for a day, it felt like home. 

…

A/N: Oh My Gosh I have been working on this fic for SO LONG and I am so so so happy to have finally finished it. If you haven’t guessed, my new series will be writing Upstead (and possibly other OC couples) as T'S songs because some of them for SO FREAKING WELL! Come back...be here is a bonus track off of red that I found a few weeks after 8x03 aired, and this fic has been a WIP since then, you don’t understand how excited I am to write these! Thank you SO MUCH for reading! Hope you enjoyed <3

taglist: @anniesardors @joy-meathiel @stephanie708 @carissalizz @snowwhite013 @imjustwritingg @benharmonsupremacy @angelsjedi @onechicago-upsteadrhekker

[anniesardors]

Whenever I think about Upstead as parents, I always imagine that they would give their child an Irish first name (or Irish-American) and a Greek middle name. I can see Hailey trying to rid the Upton name (banishing any connection to her father) but not her Greek heritage. Like I couldn't imagine their baby being something like Lauren Halstead

I can them doing something like this and maybe pulling from both their backgrounds. It would be sweet! It’s exciting to think about what they might potentially name their kids!

[upsteadhq]

butterfly kisses - 4

happy easter everyone! sorry it’s been a while, i’ve been meaning to update but every oneshot i start kinda gets abandoned. anyway, i hope you enjoy this little upstead family easter drabble!

also posted on ao3 and ff @/halstexds

"Mace, can you come in here please?” Jay shouted from the living room, and not a beat later Macie’s small but heavy footsteps could be heard running toward the room from the kitchen. He braced himself for impact and sure enough, when Macie ran inside, she threw herself into her father’s side, earning a groan from him in return and it made him take a step back to keep his balance.

The toddler shot him a toothy smile “Sorry.”

Jay shook his head and bent down, placing his hands under his daughter’s arms and lifting her up, spinning her round so she was lying upside down. Macie let out a long string of giggles as she swayed from side to side as Jay carried her around the room.

“Tickle me!” Macie’s shouts and Jay was just transferring her weight to one arm so he could when Hailey came into the room, their one-year-old son sat quietly on her hip, and called her husband’s name, stopping him in his tracks.

She’s trying to hide the smile on her face. “She’s just eaten.”

Macie moans loudly as Jay puts her back down and she lifts her arms, asking for Jay to pick her back up again.

Jay places his hand on top of her head, ruffling her already messy hair as he sighs. “Sorry, kid, but you don’t wanna get sick again, we’ve got a busy day today,” he says, earning another groan in return as he looks back up to meet his wife’s gaze. “Is it all ready?”

Hailey nods. “All done.”

Jay gets Macie’s attention again and points her in the direction toward the couch. Once she’s sat, he perches himself on the coffee table and sits opposite her, tapping her knee as he says, “Okay, I’ve got a game for you.”

The pouting lip is gone instantly and her face lights up at that. “A game?”

“Yeah, it’s a little egg hunt around the house, and you’ve gotta work with your brother and find all the little eggs in the rooms and then you get candy as a prize.”

Macie gets to her feet on top of the couch and jumps a few times. “I want candy!”

Jay points to Hailey in the doorway, who smiles and holds out a small woven basket. “Then you better get going then.”

The four-year-old darts her gaze between her mother and father for a beat before she jumps off the furniture, running over to Hailey and thanking her as she takes the basket away, hopping in one spot.

“Where do I go?” She quickly asks.

Hailey jerks her chin down the hallway. “In the garden.”

Macie doesn’t need to be told another time and she takes off running back into the kitchen and the door into the backyard could be heard swinging open moments later.

“Be careful on the stairs!” Hailey shouts after her.

Not seconds later could they hear the faint noise of a bang on wood, which made both Jay and Hailey widen their eyes but they didn't have the chance to move before Macie shouted. “I’m okay!”

Jay and Hailey both breathlessly chuckled and took a small breath each as they prepared to head outside and chase their daughter around their backyard first thing on the Sunday morning. After which they headed out there just as Macie yelled at finding one of the brightly colored hard boiled eggs that Hailey had hidden around the garden.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Hailey placed Alfie to the floor, who took a few wobbly unaccompanied steps before dropping to the floor and deciding crawling was the faster way to go. The one-year-old quickly caught up with his sister, by this point she was on the opposite side of the garden digging through the bush and he circled her feet, curious as to what she was looking for and almost causing her to trip up.

After that, Jay kept Alfie occupied and out of Macie’s way as Hailey helped their daughter search the garden. They lapped the garden multiple times hunting, Macie shouting out with excitement every time she found one. Her behavior transferred over to her brother when he stumbled across one of the colorful eggs, him raising the egg above his head as he let out a shriek before trying to eat it.

Ten minutes later, Macie was sitting back at the dining table with a large smile on her face, digging through her candy basket as Jay picked the leaves out of her hair. She tilted her head to the side slightly.

“Can we do another egg hunt?” She asks.

Jay smirks slightly, squeezing her shoulder softly. “You’ll do another one after church.”

She turns her head upwards and looks up to her father with a bright glimmer in her eyes. “Will I get more candy?”

This makes him chuckle. “I think so.”

Macie turns her attention back to her basket, whispering under her breath, “Yes!”

[haileyhalsteadd]

upstead pregnancy blurb

tw: pregnancy, vague mentions of abusive childhood

y'all made me do it again, I blurbed. a super lovely anon had this idea and I had to give it a shot. love! 💕

The phone timer blaring on the bathroom counter caused Hailey to jump. She lifted herself off of the cold tiles, hands shaking more than she'd like to admit. A simple piece of plastic was about to determine the rest of her life.

Hailey had been feeling ill and generally off for weeks. She brushed it off the first week as a cold, the second week as the flu. The third week is when she began to worry and Jay was frantic, telling Hailey for weeks that she should get checked out. The night he threatened to call Will was the last straw for Hailey, the next morning she promised herself to buy a pregnancy test, just to be safe.

She wanted kids, at least she thinks she does. She knows Jay does. But the terror creeped up Hailey as the timer ticked away. What if she was pregnant? How would she tell Jay? Would she be a good mom? Or would she succumb to the fate of her dreadful childhood? She had zero doubts about Jay, he would be the best father. All the doubt and unease was about herself.

Taking a deep breath, she savors the final seconds of her world remaining normal, soon it would turn on its axis.

Two pink lines.

Positive.

A harsh breath escaped Hailey's lips as she slid down onto the floor, test still in hand. The tears were falling before she could even stop them, her vision blurred as she placed a trembling hand over her mouth. She was pregnant.

Jay would be home soon, his hour at the gym rapidly coming to an end and Hailey remained on the bathroom floor.

The tears subsided as she heard the front door open, the clatter of keys hitting the dining room table followed shortly after.

"Hails?" Jay called out into the home.

Hailey's voice scratched as she answered, "In the bathroom!"

Jay's footsteps were the only sound in the home as he entered the bathroom, meeting the sight of Hailey on the floor with tear stained cheeks and puffy red eyes.

Jay knealed down, a comforting hand landing on Hailey's shoulder, eyebrows furrowing together as he spoke, "Hailey, babe, what's wrong?"

Hailey didn't speak, the test raised in front of her was answer enough. She visibly saw the color drain from Jay's face and that scared her. Her brain was running marathons, and then she began rambling.

All of the doubts and worries slipped out of her mouth as Jay sat and listened, color slowly reappearing in his face as Hailey continued to ramble.

"What if I'll be a bad mom? It's not like a had a good example growing up. What if I'm like that? What if I'm not meant to be mom, or I have no maternal instincts? Or I mess something up? Or buy the wrong shampoo? Babies are expensive and we both have dangerous jobs. What if-"

Jay silenced Hailey with a soft murmur of her name, his thumb rubbing comforting circles on her thigh, "Hailey, you are going to be the best mom. You know how I know that? It's because you survived your childhood and you remained human. You're kind and passionate. You are not your father. You're loving and fiercely protective of those you love. I see it everyday. You can do this. We can do this, I'm here every step of the way, whatever you want to do."

A new wave of emotions hit Hailey, this time all of them positive. Jay moved to embrace her, pulling her onto his lap still on the floor. Jay swore his face was going to break with how hard he was smiling as Hailey hugged him tighter. They could do this.

They were having a baby. And no matter how difficult it was going to be, being by eachothers side was strength enough to do anything.

[imjustwritingg]

I’m still not over that epilogue!! And I miss Avery 😭😭😭 BUUUTTT I understand that it was the perfect time to wrap up that story (though I will be holding out for an epilogue or Avery x Jay one shot or something for the rest of time 😂)

I’m super curious to know if the chaos queen has anything new in store!?!? Like are we taking a breather for a bit post MIWF (which would be totally fair and understandable) or can we expect an ao3 notification at some point in the near future because you’ve blessed us with more Upstead words? Any chance your name will still be appearing in my inbox next week? 💕

Oh Anon. I miss her already too. Writing Avery was just so much fun for me. The best kid, fictional or not. I cannot make any promises for future MIWF things, but ya never know what my brain will come up with.

HA! The chaos queen. I will happily take that title, but I gotta share it with @anniesardors. 😉

As for new things, I am gonna take a little bit of a breather. Just because MIWF was quite a long project and even though I am still in denial and really sad it’s over, it’ll be nice to just chill for a bit. Ya know?

And I don’t have any plans to post anything new that soon. I do have a new fic in the works that has been dubbed “the asshole Jay fic” which is super hilarious to me, but I don’t have a definitive date or timeframe for when I’ll start posting that one. Soon-ish? A month? Maybe? Not entirely sure yet, but a new fic is definitely coming.

[agent-bash]

If Upstead were to have a kid/s or if you were to write a story of about it, what would you want their name/s to be?

Hey Nonny! So I've actually written a couple stories where Upstead have kids (you can read them here if you want). In those stories I used the names Oliver and Grace. I really love those names, and if I write another story about Hailey and Jay with kids or as single parents, then I might just recycle them, because again love those names.

Other names for boys

-Declan

-Sebastian (shout out to @fank0ne, they've got a series of one shots based around Upstead having a boy named Sebastian. Again another one of my favourite names)

-Lincoln

-Isaac

Other names for Girls

-Charlotte (who would refuse to answer to anything other than Charlie or Char. This is as a nod to the character Tracy played on Revolution)

-Noël/Noelle (think I've seen this one around, not sure though)

-Clara (tagging @anniesardors, here, clearly we share a brain on this one, I know this on was on her list too and it’s probably my favourite after Grace)

I don't know why these two, but there just something about Christmasy names that work (also they both sound really good with Halstead (and Upton if there was a single parent thing going on))

-Maia/Maya (Again think I've seen this one around but am not 100% sure. It's a name I like, and it speaks to Hailey's greek heritage)

-Moira (as either a middle name or an unused first name, mostly because it's my head canon that this Jay and Will's mom's name and they want to honour that, but it's been back burnered since the reveal this season that they have a cousin with the same name)