I write fanfics for Supernatural, Criminal Minds, Avengers, and some other things. Please read and comment to let me know what you think! Constructive criticism only please ^_^ REQUESTS OPEN!
romantic relationships blah blah blah okay but what about risking everything for your sibling. what about the unwavering love and care that can only come from a parent to a child. what about someone who just wants their best friend back. ever thought of that.
in 2026, remember how GOOD writing feels. remember how satsfying it is to get your characters to the point you have been dying to get to, where they will experience the love, fear, relief or whatever the feeling you want to bring to life may be. let this year be the year of writing, prgress and of satisfactory endings.
Warnings: canon-typical themes and angst, mentions of natural disasters
Spoilers: S1 spoilers for Connor’s background
Notes: doing things a bit different for the next few ‘chapters’ of this fic - let me know what you think!
As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: the usual
Word count: 876
Connor walked into Chicago Med, hands in his pockets. It was the start of his second week and he was ready for the usual chaos of the ED - well, not the chaos of his fellow doctors, but rather that of the patients.
“Doctor Rhodes,” Maggie’s voice cut through the hum of voices in the room. “You got a postcard delivered here for you.”
Connor bit back a smile, knowing it was from Y/n. He had given her the hospital’s address since he was still apartment shopping when they went their separate ways.
He grabbed the thick paper with a nod. “Thanks, Maggie.”
The nurse raised an eyebrow and watched him with a skeptical but curious look.
Conner tucked the card into his pocket until he got to the doctor’s lounge then pulled it back out. The front had a beautiful picture of a beach, backed by a sunset, a small flag of Puerto Rico on the bottom. He smiled and flipped it over to see his sister’s neat handwriting on the back.
Dear Conny,
Been in Puerto Rico a week now. We have a setup in one of the damaged schools near the shore to treat hurricane victims. People are great - sun is brutal. But a great place to work on triage and get trauma and disaster coordination experience. Tomorrow my shift of nurses and doctors is going for a fun day since we’re halfway through our trip. I’ll send a letter sometime next week before I leave. Maybe a picture or 2. If you wanna write, send it to the address below ‘cause I’ll probably be in Syria by the time it would get to me.
Te amo, hermano mayor ❤️
Connor chuckled a bit and his heart swelled as he read the message. His eyes went over it one more time before he grabbed some tape from the nearby desk and stuck it in his locker. Just now noticing Dr. Choi walking in, he politely muttered a ‘morning’.
“Got mail?” he said in a friendly manner.
Connor debated his response for a moment before deciding not to hold back. He had no issues with Dr. Choi so far.
“Uh yeah. My little sister, Y/n. She’s doing a series of medical missions right now,” he said, unable to stop the small fond smile from forming.
Dr. Choi let one of his own form. “Sounds like a good kid,” he said simply, not wanting to pry too much with the new doctor.
“Yeah,” Connor said thoughtfully. “She is.”
Another week later, Connor walked into work, Maggie held out an envelope, he thanked her, and headed towards the lounge.
“You’re a popular man, Dr. Rhodes,” Maggie noted.
Connor smiled after he had turned around. “Something like that.”
He didn’t bother taking his jacket off before ripping into the letter, hiding his excitement at the thickness of the envelope. He could tell there were pictures inside but he took the letter out first.
To my brother who I’m definitely not missing or thinking about all the time…>_>
First of all, the fun day? AMAZING! I wish you could’ve been there, Connor. We got to do these ‘natural waterslides’ and hike in one of the rainforests. Later we went back to the coast and I GOT TO SNORKEL WITH SEA TURTLES, CONNOR!!! It was SO incredible! Then at night we went kayaking in the Vieques Biobay which was so cool! The water was clear and lit up by all this bioluminescent algae! I sent you pictures from the last two things.
Second, I think this was a great place to start my string of medical missions. Since we had been using spanish in Mexico, it made the transition to Puerto Rico easy. And knowing I’ll be going to Syria next, I’m glad I didn’t start with something as heavy as that. It’s still devastating seeing the wreckage here and how many people’s homes have been destroyed, but there’s still this feeling of community here. People rallying around each other due to the shared trauma. It’s honestly kind of beautiful. And they’re all so nice with us. One of the little girls from this family we treated gave me a bracelet she made herself ❤️ I’m going to miss the camaraderie here and the medical team I’ve been working with. But I look forward to what the next place on my list will teach me.
Love you big brother ❤️
-Y/n
Connor chuckled at a couple points as he read the letter, practically hearing his sister’s enthusiasm in her words. He pulled out the pictures in the envelope next; there were three.
One, as she said, was of her snorkeling underwater, a sea turtle not too far off from her.
The second was a picture of Y/n sitting in a kayak pointing at the glowing water under the vessel.
Last was a picture of Y/n and a little girl hugging and smiling at the camera.
A fondness filled Connor’s heart that only his little sister could provide. Filled with pride yet again, Connor took the letter and pictures, placing them in his locker before starting the day. Later when he had a break between the madness, he wrote his first letter to his sister.
Summary: On his day off, Detective Jay Halstead jumps in to save a woman from an assault. What he thinks will be a one-and-done case turns into something more when their paths keep crossing — and she lingers in his mind long after it’s over. Drawn into her world, Jay finds himself facing something that challenges everything he thought he knew about healing, trust, and second chances.
Warnings: canon-typical themes and violence, angst, SEE TW BELOW, wound descriptions
POSSIBLE TRIGGER WARNINGS: assault, descriptions of mugging, detailed description of panic attack, hints at PTSD
Spoilers: none
Notes: feeding my newest obsession of Jay Halstead and this one has already really gotten away from me lol. Settle in.
As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: I do not own any of the One Chicago shows, characters, or plots
Word count: 1278
Y/n L/n walked the back streets near Jefferson Park, one hand gripping the leash of a nervous pit bull named Atlas, the other clutching pepper spray. Chicago wasn’t the safest city — she knew that. But lately, she’d started to feel like it could be home, even if the hypervigilance never really went away.
She was pulled out of her thoughts when rough hands seized her arms from behind, causing a scream to tear its way out of her throat. She was pulled into the nearest alley, her grip on Atlas’ leash releasing, doubling her panic. Her attacker slammed the hand holding her pepper spray to the nearest wall, making her drop her only weapon. But her eyes widened at the quick realization she had her personal alarm attached to her belt loop. She struggled to keep enough control of her arms to pull the loop off, releasing an ear-splitting alarm, effectively making the man behind her let her go for a moment.
“Bitch!”
Jay Halstead was taking an early evening run on his day off. He focused his energy on the workout to try and renew his mind for the workweek ahead. With one earbud in playing music, he let his eyes dart around as a force of habit; some instincts never turned off. He wound around a sidewalk loop at the park he was jogging through to start heading back to his car when he heard it.
A scream.
He immediately stopped in his tracks and listened. He didn’t hear another scream but what sounded like a small alarm. He bolted in the direction as he whipped his phone out, dialing 911.
“West end of Jefferson Park, possible assault in progress, plain clothes officer at the scene! I need backup and an ambo standing by!”
Y/n tried running off again, but the attacker snatched her by the shirt and ripped the alarm off her belt loop, and threw it to the ground, smashing it under his boot.
“Atlas!” she screamed, trying once more to take off. But the man roughly gripped her arm. She got one good swing in, not seeing the knife he wielded, and gasped in pain when he swung, catching the arm she punched him with. She gasped in pain and cold fear ran through her veins when she realized the full gravity of her situation.
Suddenly, a firm, commanding voice bellowed out, “CPD! Let her go!”
The attacker hesitated for a moment before dropping Y/n and running off. Y/n’s rescuer sprinted after him, tackling him to the ground, quickly grabbing ahold of both his arms, pulling them harshly behind his back.
He leaned down towards the man’s face and growled, “You move again and I’ll break your arm, understand?” The man didn’t respond or try moving as Jay pulled his spare cuffs from his pants pocket, locking him in tight. “Yeah. That’s what I thought.”
He sighed as he heard familiar sirens approaching and finally took a chance to look behind him at the woman on the ground. His eyes widened a bit when he noticed her backed against the wall of the alley, gasping for breath.
He ran over, kneeling down in front of her, holding his hands out in a calming gesture. “Hey, hey - it’s ok,” he said, voice changing in an instant. The calm gentleness was a stark contrast to the previous threatening growl. “You’re safe now, he can’t get you.”
Tears streaming down her flushed cheeks, Y/n took stuttered breaths as her eyes darted about. “At-Atlas,” she whimpered. “He-He ran off, I have to-”
“Who’s Atlas?” he asked. “A dog?” Y/n nodded vigorously, still struggling to get a proper breath. “Ok, I promise I’ll help you find him but I need you to calm down first, ok? You can’t help him if you pass out.”
Jay kept a gentle tone as he continued. “I’m Jay. Can you tell me your name?”
“Y-Y/n,” she gasped.
“Ok, Y/n. I need you to focus on your breathing, alright? Try matching your breath with mine. In…out.”
She tried to follow his lead but the first breath she tried taking got caught in her throat, causing her to fall into a small coughing fit, further restricting her access to air.
“Ok, it’s ok. Can I touch you, Y/n? Is that alright?” Jay asked gently, not wanting to make her panic any further if he just went for it.
Y/n turned her eyes up to his green ones and nodded. He gave her a single nod of encouragement and grabbed her hands in his, just now noticing the wound on her arm. “Shit,” he muttered. “Ok, hold on,” he said quickly. He looked around for a second before grabbing the bottom of his shirt and ripping a strip off. “This is gonna hurt for a second. Be brave for me.” He tied the fabric around the cut, his chest tightening at her restrained groan, before taking her hands again. “Alright. When I squeeze your hands, I need you to breathe in. When I let go, you’re gonna breathe out, ok?”
Y/n nodded and followed Jay’s instructions. Slowly but surely, she was able to breathe easier.
“That’a girl,” Jay said gently.
As Y/n was able to finally get enough air in her lungs and her head stopped spinning, she buried her face in her hands and let out a small cry. “He was making so much progress,” she whispered; Jay almost didn’t hear it (though he supposed he wasn’t necessarily meant to). “I messed up. He must be so scared.”
Jay furrowed his brow a bit, hovering his hand above her leg for a moment before gently placing it on her knee. “You didn’t mess anything up, ok? This wasn’t your fault. We’ll find him.”
“Detective Halstead.”
Jay turned his gaze to see a couple officers from the 21st precinct. He glanced back at Y/n for a moment. “Stay here, ok? I’ll be back in a second.” The girl nodded absently, resting her head back against the wall and closing her eyes for a moment.
Jay patted her knee and stood, walking a few feet away to tell the officers what happened and tie up some loose ends, promising his witness report within the next 24 hours.
“Ok,” one of them said. “We have an ambo on standby to take her to Med if she’s hurt.”
“Yeah, cut on her arm and probably a couple other bruises,” Jay reported, but not in the typical informatory tone he usually held at a scene. The officers nodded and assured Jay the attacker was taken care of and they would follow up with him at the precinct tomorrow.
Jay walked back over to Y/n and held a hand out to her. She hesitated for a moment before taking his hand and letting him help her up. “Are you ok going to Med?” he asked gently.
Y/n glanced at the EMT’s at the end of the alley and nodded. “I’ll be ok,” she whispered, looking back at him.
Jay pursed his lips and squeezed her shoulder a bit before handing her his card. “I may or may not need to follow up with you. Either way, if you need anything, let me know, ok?”
Y/n took it and nodded. “Thank you.”
Jay watched as she got into the back of the ambulance, his eyes not leaving her form until the doors closed and they were out of sight. He sighed, running a hand through his hair as he headed to his own car, exhausted from the ordeal but glad the girl was safe.
Notes: As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: same as before
Word count: 1348
The next day came too slowly for Y/n - and she didn’t even have to wait a full 24 hours. She spent a good portion of the night before, throwing clothes out of her drawers and closet as she debated what to wear. Too fancy…too casual…too…’trying too hard’... But she eventually settled on jeans, a nice sweater, a jean jacket, and some boots. Nice, but casual.
She stopped at the shelter the next day, ignoring F/n’s knowing and teasing look at her attire, and grabbed Atlas.
“Ok, normal day. Just going for a walk…stopping for coffee…and meeting up with your favorite detective,” Y/n told Atlas, who just tilted his head at her. “Ok, so it’s not just for you - don’t rub it in,” she relented. Atlas barked once as if teasing her. Y/n squinted at him before hooking a leash to his harness and left the shelter.
Y/n clenched Atlas’s leash in her hands, rubbing them on her pants every once and awhile to keep her palms from sweating. As she approached the coffee shop, she spotted Jay sitting at a small table on the outside, scrolling through his phone. She took a subtle deep breath and walked up to him. “Hey,” she smiled.
Jay glanced up and gave a reserved smile. “Hey.”
Atlas pulled at his leash when he saw Jay and Y/n laughed a bit as she let him go up to the detective.
Jay smiled a little wider and knelt on the ground in front of him. “Hey, buddy,” he said softly, rubbing the dog’s ears as he wagged his tail. “Glad you still remember me.”
Y/n softened as she watched them, then her smile hardened a bit into a light smirk. “He was glad you invited him today.”
Jay looked at her and gave his own smirk. “Me too. I’ve been wanting to see him again.” They held eye contact for a moment before breaking it and both laughing a bit under their breaths. Jay stood and nudged his head towards the order window on the outside of the coffee shop.
Light commentary filled the time between them waiting in line, ordering, and sitting back down at a small table outside - some simple stories from Jay’s week at the precinct, a couple funny things that happened at Y/n’s work, even some cliche small talk about the weather. After they each took a few thoughtful sips of their own drinks and Atlas settled at Y/n’s feet, Jay looked at her again.
“Any luck finding him a home yet?” he asked, trying to keep things light but personable.
Y/n sighed a bit and shook her head. “Unfortunately, no.”
“How long has he been at the shelter?”
“A year.”
Jay’s eyebrows shot up. “A year? And he still hasn’t found a home?” he said incredulously.
Y/n’s hands cupped her coffee as she traced the lid with her thumb. “Pitbulls are always the last to go. Especially ones with trust issues. That's why I try so hard to work with them to make them more adoptable but no one seems to want him besides me.”
Jay considered her words and the clear heart she had for what she did. “Have you thought about adopting him?”
Y/n smiled faintly and looked down at her cup again. “Trust me, I wish I could. But my apartment building has a policy against bully breeds. Management’s not exactly flexible.”
“That’s rough…He’s lucky to have you, though.”
Y/n glanced up, smiling a little at the sincerity in his tone. “Thanks. I think he’s helped me as much as I’ve helped him though, honestly.”
Jay gave a small soft smile. And from there, conversation drifted into many different topics. As the sun started its arc in the opposite direction, they both stood. Jay rubbed his neck then pushed his hands in his pockets to hide any nervousness he felt.
“I uh…I had a really good time,” he admitted.
Y/n smiled shyly, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear, making Jay’s heart flutter. “I did too. I’m uh…I’m glad I got to accompany Atlas to see you,” she said, attempting to joke and partly succeeding…and partly still showing slight shyness.
Jay openly grinned, looking to the ground as he minimized it, then back to Y/n. “I hope he had a good time,” he shot back.
Y/n’s face softened. “He did,” she said quietly. The two of them shared a knowing look that said they definitely weren’t talking about Atlas.
Later, Jay walked back into the precinct after lunch. He made his way up to the bullpen, leftover coffee still in hand and a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. Nothing big, just a subtle, relaxed look that the team hadn’t seen on him in a long time.
Ruzek, as always it seemed, was the first to notice.
He grinned as he leaned back in his chair. “Well, well, well,” he said with a feral smirk. “Look who’s suddenly in a good mood. What’d we miss, Halstead?”
Jay didn’t even look at him. “Nothing. Just lunch.”
Antonio snorted. “Lunch, huh? That code for something?”
Jay gave him a pointed look, but that only earned more grins around the room.
“C’mon, man, don’t play coy,” Ruzek continued. “You disappear for an hour, come back lookin’ like you just walked out of a Hallmark movie…” He snapped his fingers as realization hit. “Wait a sec - it was the shelter girl, wasn’t it?”
Jay froze mid-step, just enough to betray himself. He rolled his eyes but the half-smile tugging at his lips gave him away. “You all have way too much free time.”
Adam gasped. “I knew it!”
Even Kim grinned in the corner. “Aww, that’s cute. He’s got a crush.”
Jay just shook his head, trying and failing to hide the way his grin spread wider. He grabbed a case file and started flipping through it, pretending to be busy.
When Y/N signed back in from lunch, the lingering warmth from her time with Jay still lingered in her chest and showed in her easy smile.
F/n grinned as she passed by with a leash in hand. “Okay, what’s with the look?”
Y/n, like Jay at the 21st, didn’t make eye contact. “What look?”
“That one.” She pointed playfully at her. “The one that says you had a really good ‘lunch’.”
Y/N laughed, shaking her head. “You’re imagining things.”
“Uh-huh,” her friend said, clearly unconvinced.
Y/N smiled to herself as she sat down in Atlas’s kennel with him, the dog quick to lay over her lap and turn his head up to lick her face. She sat for a moment then smirked a bit as she got an idea. She pulled her phone out and took a quick selfie with Atlas. She typed out a message to Jay before she could overthink it.
Atlas wanted to say thanks again for lunch, he had a good time.
A minute later, her phone buzzed with Jay’s reply.
Tell him he’s welcome. But next time, he’s buying the coffee.
Y/n bit her lip, giggling a bit, the fact that he hinted at a next time not passing her by. She typed back quickly:
He said he doesn’t have cash but wants to know if you take kisses as compensation ;)
The message sent, and within half a second, Y/n’s eyes widened in realization at how that text sounded.
“Oh my god,” she muttered, face flushing hot. She quickly followed it up with another text.
DOG kisses. Dog kisses. He’s a big licker, I swear 😳
On the other end, Jay’s brows shot up when the first message came through, then a slow, amused grin formed before the second text arrived.
He chuckled under his breath, shaking his head as he typed back:
You’re both trouble, huh? Guess I’ll have to hold him to that, then.
He set his phone down, still smiling and trying not to think about the way her flustered message had made him feel.
POSSIBLE TRIGGER WARNINGS: light anxiety descriptions, alludes to PTSD
Spoilers: none?
Notes: ngl, i freaking adore writing this
As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: same as before
Word count: 1076
The 21st Precinct was buzzing as normal. And upstairs in Intelligence, the team was going back and forth on case theories, typing reports, and tossing the occasional teasing remark - the latter of which was about to increase tenfold.
Sergeant Platt came around the corner, stopping in her usual commanding way. “Halstead!”
Jay raised his brow, spinning in his chair to face her. “Yeah, Sergeant?”
“You have a visitor downstairs,” she said flatly. But to anyone who knew her enough, there was just a hint of curiosity and teasing in her tone.
And the sharks began to circle.
“Oooo, visitor?” Adam beamed, leaning forward in his chair.
Jay scoffed and rolled his eyes at him before turning back to Platt. “Who is it?”
She shrugged. “Don’t know. Sweet girl. Brought a dog with her,” she clipped, turning around and heading back towards the stairs. “Don’t make her wait!”
Erin gasped. “I bet it’s the shelter girl!”
“The one he saved last week?” Kevin questioned, his own brow raised now.
Jay shook his head and headed down the stairs, ignoring them all.
He reached the lobby and couldn’t stop the small smile that tugged at his lips at the sight - Y/n stood there holding a bag and coffee cup in one hand, and Atlas’s leash in the other, the dog standing against Y/n’s leg as he looked around at everyone that passed them by. Y/n looked up at seeing his movement and a shy smile made its way to her face.
“Hey,” she said as he stepped up to meet Jay halfway. “I uh, I hope this isn’t weird…me showing up here.”
Jay gave her a small, reassuring smile. “No, not weird,” he assured her. “Just…unexpected.”
Y/n smiled, glancing at the ground before back up at him. “Yeah, I figured…but anyway, I wanted to bring you lunch…as a thank-you for bringing Atlas back to me. Plus coffee that doesn’t taste like battery acid if your machine here is anything like the one at the shelter.”
Jay chuckled and gave a charming, full grin. “Well, you definitely get brownie points for that one,” he said, taking the cup from her hand. “But…you really didn’t have to.”
Y/n’s smile softened. “I know…but I wanted to. Plus, Atlas wanted to see his favorite detective again.”
Jay let out an actual laugh at that, sending warmth flooding Y/n’s chest. He knelt down to pet the dog at her side. “Well, how can I say ‘no’ to that?” Y/n smiled wider as she watched the interaction. Simple to anyone walking by, but to Y/n - it was special. “You taking care of her, bud?”
Y/n chuckled softly. “Trying his best. Figured bringing him here to see someone familiar would be a good step to getting him out into the world again.”
Jay nodded as he stood. “Makes sense.”
A small, comfortable silence passed between them before Y/n looked at the ground again. Meeting Jay’s eyes once more, she handed him the bag of food, trying to hide a blush when their hands brushed. “Well…I’ll let you get back to work.”
Jay couldn’t comprehend the spark of disappointment in his chest. He covered it with a small smile. “Thanks again, Y/n.”
She smiled back. “You’re welcome.” Y/n whistled to Atlas and walked him back outside into the midday Chicago air, Jay watching her the whole way.
Jay jogged back up the steps to Intelligence, coffee and food in his hands. The whole team watched with curious gazes as he went straight to his desk without acknowledging them.
Adam rested his elbows on his desk and head in his hands, grinning. “Wellllll?”
Jay didn’t even glance up. “Well what?”
“What is the shelter girl?” Erin almost squealed.
“Whoever it was got him coffee and lunch,” Kevin noted with a grin.
“Movin’ fast, man,” Antonio jumped in with a smirk.
Now Jay looked up, clocking each of his teammates then shook his head and went into the bag to pull food out. “You guys need better ways to pass your time,” he mumbled. He pulled out a wrapped sandwich and paused for a moment when he saw a piece of paper slipped into the wrap. He took it out and unfolded it. ‘My number’ was written neatly in the first line, a phone number under it, and the last line read, ‘So you don’t have to do a background check to find it ;)’
“LOOK AT THAT SMILE!”
Jay flinched at Adam’s shout across the bullpen, dropping the note to glare at him.
“Oh my g-d, Jay - your face is red!” Erin gasped.
Jay ran a hand over his face and moved his chair to hide his face behind his computer monitor so he didn’t have to suppress the full grin that came across his face.
The next day, Y/n was cleaning up the shelter before they had to lock up when her phone started buzzing in her pocket. She bit back a grin when she saw the name.
“Detective Halstead,” she answered, openly grinning. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”
On the other end of the line, Jay allowed himself a smooth, reserved smile. “I was just calling to check and see how Atlas was doing,” he said casually, a smirk apparent in his voice.
Y/n grinned wider, playing along. “Atlas, huh? Well, Atlas is doing fine…he was actually just asking me if I knew how you were doing.”
A chuckle met her ears. “How kind of him…I’m good…Just thinking about how I want to see him actually.”
“Oh yeah? Well, I think he would like that, Detective,” Y/n said coyly.
“Are you free tomorrow? The two of you I mean,” Jay quickly ‘corrected’ himself.
Y/n giggled a bit. “Right, right. Well, lucky for you, we’re indeed both free tomorrow.”
Jay grinned. “Great. Does Atlas like the coffee shop down the road from the precinct?”
“He does, actually,” Y/n answered, her smile softening.
“Perfect. I’ll see you then.”
“See you.”
As Y/n hung up, she kept her phone in her hand with a faint smile still on her face. Her thoughts were interrupted by someone loudly clearing their throat. She jumped a bit and looked up to see her friend, F/n, arms crossed, eyebrows raised, and a smirk on her face.
“Nothing,” Y/n cleared her throat, getting back to sweeping.
Warnings: canon-typical themes, MENTIONS ABUSE AND MURDER in canon-typical cases, brutal verbal warfare on suspect
Spoilers: none
Notes: As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: I do not own any of the One Chicago shows, characters, or plots
Word count: 1410
It was nearing the end of Y/n’s second week at the 21st precinct. They had a heavy case involving a series of young women abuse-murders. The team had a suspect apprehended but he didn’t break with any of the men on the team, no matter their approach. They all stood behind the glass, Voight holding his chin in thought as he stared at the suspect.
“L/n.”
“Yes, sir?”
“You’re up.”
She didn’t even hesitate. “Yes, sir.” She walked out of the room with confidence.
The team blinked, expecting at least a double-take from Voight calling her to her first interrogation with them. Little did they know, they were about to see one of the reasons Voight brought her into their team.
Y/n opened the door, walked in, and shut it with one fluid movement. The man looked over and chuckled darkly, crossing his arms, and shaking his head. “So this is their next move? Sending a girl in?”
Y/n shrugged, hiding her irritation. “Guess they figured there was already enough testosterone in the room.”
The man gave a filthy smirk as he looked her up and down. “Glad you noticed it, sweetheart.”
Behind the glass, the whole team swallowed bile. And something red-hot coursed through Jay’s veins.
“Nice to see they hire women who know how to please a man.”
Y/n stayed quiet as she sat, letting him talk at first. “You like that, do you? Women who tell you what you want to hear? Stroke your ego?”
“Oh, you can stroke-”
“Ones that don’t talk back? Cower around you?”
That shut him up. He paused long enough to give Y/n confirmation before she continued profiling him. “You like feeling powerful.” Then she ticked her eyes over his frame, mind floating back to things throughout the investigation and his arrest.
She stood up sharply, the team not even seeing the small but strong shove she gave the glass in front of her, sending it shooting off the table and shattering against the wall. The effect was immediate.
The man flinched so hard the team could practically hear it. Some of them jumped at the unexpected glass break too.
Y/n smirked before swinging around the table, bracing one hand on it and leaning close to the suspect’s ear to whisper. Quietly. Threateningly. “People only give that reaction when they’ve lived through it, sweetheart,” she teased darkly. “It was mommy, wasn’t it? Single? Daddy left with all her money so she drank the remainder of it away to deal with the pain?”
The team’s eyes widened and jaws dropped.
“That glass break…that was intentional…” Kevin observed.
Erin was next. “This isn’t interrogation…it’s dissection…”
“You know what I think, Travis?” Y/n continued her quiet assault. “I think she used to beat you. She’d come home late, shouting about whatever the world would listen to and throw whatever alcohol she got drunk from against the wall before laying into you. And you dealt with it every. Single. Day. So when you finally got old enough to feel the effects of your trauma, you decided to go after women. But my only question for you…is what does it make you feel? Powerful? Right? Does it make you feel GOOD?!” she shouted and accentuated her last word by pounding her fist on the table, making the man’s fury boil over. He shoved the chair back so hard it clattered against the wall behind him and he turned to face Y/n.
“It makes me feel vindicated! They deserved it!”
Y/n stepped back with a smirk at the broken man in front of her as the realization crossed his face. “Thank you for your cooperation, Travis,” she snarked, turning on her heel and leaving the room.
Behind the two-way glass, the team stood shocked.
Kevin was the first to speak again. “Man…how is that the same girl?”
“Class clown by day…psychological executioner by night…” Adam commented, afraid even though he didn’t do anything.
And Jay? He stood watching the suspect derail in the room with silent awe on his face. “Damn…”
After the interrogation, Y/n kept herself busy. Between filling out paperwork and Voight telling her she did well, she planted a few…surprises for her next targets in the team.
Erin mentioned going to the shooting range to practice for their next license renewals, and Y/n waited a few minutes before following her down, pockets filled though no one noticed. The door to the range was shut and Y/n smiled to herself. She pulled out a handful of party poppers and taped them to the doorjam, taping the strings to the door itself.
Then she waited.
She flipped through documents to fill the time until the sounds of gunshots stopped. Y/n looked up and grinned as she saw the doorknob twist. Holding a hand over her mouth, she watched with glee as Erin opened the door and shouted as about ten favors POPPED and emptied their contents onto her.
Y/n bent over laughing, holding a hand to her stomach as Erin took a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart. She finally looked over at Y/n, who looked like she was about to have a heart attack for a totally different reason.
Erin tried to be mad. She really did. But she couldn’t. She let out one last breath, followed by a chuckle as a smile spread across her face. She shook her head as Y/n straightened up.
“Ok. I’ll admit - that was good,” she relented.
The girls walked back to the bullpen together, just in time to see Al slamming his computer mouse against his desk with fury. “The hell’s wrong with this damn thing?” he muttered. Y/n, still in a giggly mood after Erin’s prank, snorted a bit, immediately throwing a hand up to cover her mouth. But Al caught it. He looked at Y/n. Then the mouse. He lifted it to see a piece of tape over the sensor, ‘haha :)’ written on it. He dropped it and looked back at Y/n then huffed, lifting his mug in a small ‘cheers’ motion before removing the tape.
Erin chuckled a bit as she followed Y/n to her desk. “Having a hustle day, Y/n?” she asked, leaning against her desk, folding her arms loosely across her chest.
Y/n smiled. “Gotta balance the scales after a heavy case.”
Jay glanced up in time to catch a tiny shift in her expression - there and gone before he could even name it.
Then Y/n’s smile turned into a smirk as she leaned closer and whispered, “Just wait ‘til Dawson sees his car tonight.”
Erin covered her mouth to hold back a laugh. “Oh yes. Oh yes. You evil, evil genius.”
At the end of the day, the mood had effectively been shifted. The team headed out of the precinct together, bags over their shoulders, and to the parking lot around back. Antonio looked forward and his movement stopped abruptly, almost tripping over his feet when he saw his SUV.
Body, windows, rearview mirrors - every inch was covered with post-it notes of seemingly every color.
Erin, Kevin, and Kim didn’t wait before bursting into laughter, the women clinging to Kevin in order to stand up right.
Adam’s smile was so big it looked like his cheeks would split as he took out his phone to take pictures. “Yo…that’s beautiful…”
Voight and Al huffed a singular, quiet laugh (if that’s what you’d call it) and kept walking to their own cars.
Jay watched Y/n smirk like the unapologetic prank menace she was, no reaction on his own face aside from blinking a bit in shock, unaware of the spark it had just lit inside him.
Antonio froze, looking like he was processing each of the five stages of grief. He turned slowly, menacingly, to lock eyes with Y/n (who looked too smug for her own good). “You do realize this is war, right?”
Y/n smirked deeper. “Oh, I was planning on it, detective,” she said, bumping the fist he held up for her. One that said, ‘I respect this, but it’s on.’
Everyone shook their heads and went to leave. Y/n stopped to look back when she heard Antonio curse in Spanish, making her giggle to herself. Jay, catching the sound, shook his head, trying to dispel the fuzziness it left in his chest.
POSSIBLE TRIGGER WARNINGS: lightly alludes to PTSD
Spoilers: none?
Notes: As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: same as before
Word count: 1169
Y/n stood at the front desk of the shelter, finishing up some paperwork for the day when she heard the front door opening. She was finishing one last sentence, not looking up when she spoke to whoever walked in. “Sorry, we’re about to be closing soon.”
The man at the door, with a strangely familiar voice spoke softly, a smile evident. “That’s okay. I think I’ve got someone here who knows you.”
Y/n looked up to see none other than Jay standing at the door with a leash in his hand. And on the other end of it, a brindle pitbull looking around like he just came home. Atlas.
The girl froze, eyes going wide. “Oh my g-d,” she gasped, dropping her pen and bolting around the desk until she landed on her knees in front of the dog. Atlas whined, pulling at the leash until Y/n gathered him in her arms, hugging him with her whole body as he whined and licked her face, tail wagging. Y/n laughed and cried at the same time. “You’re ok. Oh my g-d, I can’t believe it’s you. I thought I lost you, buddy.”
Jay stood back with a soft smile as he watched the scene. He gave them a few moments before speaking up. “He was holed up under a porch a few blocks from the park. Took me half an hour just to get him to come close.”
Y/n paused, looking up at Jay, shocked. “You got him? Yourself?”
He nodded a bit sheepishly. “Yeah. Patrol called it in, and when I heard the description, I figured I’d check it out. He… didn’t really let anyone else near him. They were gonna try and force him out but I remembered what you said about getting him to trust you and I figured that could’ve ruined him more so…I tried instead.”
Y/n blinked after his slightly long-winded story, jaw dropped. She suddenly stood and, without thinking, threw her arms around him, crying once again. “Thank you. G-d, thank you so much, Jay,” she said, voice muffled in his shoulder.
He froze for a second, surprised, but then something softened in him. He hesitated, then wrapped his arms around her, carefully. “You don’t have to thank me,” he repeated his words from a few days ago.
Y/n pulled back, keeping her hands on his shoulders still, and shook her head. “I do. This dog means everything to me. And you didn’t have to go out of your way. Most people wouldn’t.”
Jay met her eyes. “Maybe I’m not like most people.”
Something in the air shifted a bit between them then. Warm, but unspoken.
Y/n huffed a laugh as she finally withdrew her hands and wiped her eyes. “Yeah…I’m starting to get that.” Before Jay could blush, he felt a cold nose poke his hand and looked down to see Atlas nudging him for pets. Y/n let out something between a pleasantly surprised gasp and a laugh. “He’s not scared around you.”
The detective watched the dog look up at him and wag his tail, head tilted expectantly. He felt the corners of his lips tug a bit. “Yeah, seems like it. Didn’t think he’d come near me at first. Guess we both surprised each other.” He crouched and let Atlas sniff his hand before gently petting his head, unable to hold back a smile when the dog leaned into his hand.
“He’s never warmed up to anyone that quickly except for me,” Y/n said softly. “He doesn’t usually trust people. Especially men.”
Jay glanced up at her, their eyes meeting. There was a shared understanding there. He smiled faintly. “Guess he’s got good taste in people.”
Y/n chuckled quietly, wiping the last of the tears from her face as Jay stood back up, a comfortable silence settling between them. Jay handed her Atlas’s leash, their hands brushing for a moment but neither saying anything about it. Y/n looks down a bit to hide the blush trying to creep to her cheeks before taking a breath and looking back up at Jay. “Well…since Atlas is back I should take him to the treatment room to do a once-over to make sure he’s ok.”
Jay nodded and looked around a bit. “Are you the only one here?”
“Since it’s a weekday evening, yes. They’re always slow so they don’t need more of us here.”
“Do you…I mean, would you want me to stay?...You know…for safety reasons,” Jay said a little too casually.
Y/n pursed her lips to hide a knowing smile. “Safety. Of course. That’d be nice, detective.”
Jay smiled a bit as he followed her a little ways to a small medical room. He put his hands in his pockets and leaned against the wall as he watched her get Atlas’s weight, temperature, listen to his heart; basically do a whole physical.
“You really seem like you know what you’re doing,” Jay commented. Not snarky, more matter-of-factly. Curious.
Y/n smiled up at him before continuing with the dog. “My full-time job is a vet tech down the road,” she told him.
Jay raised his eyebrows. “You work full-time and do this?”
She chuckled. “I guess you could say animals are my life.”
Jay nodded in understanding as something in his chest swelled a bit.
Once Y/n finished, she walked Atlas back to the kennels where Jay saw one with his name on it, making Jay realize Y/n was hoping above hope that Atlas would make his way back some day.
As she opened the gate, she knelt down and held Atlas’s head between her hands and looked at him adoringly, kissing his nose and resting her head against his as he wagged his tail. And something inside Jay cracked just a little more. It was like Y/n was brought back to life. Something joyful, happy, was opened inside her.
When she stood, Jay noticed Atlas looking up at him again. He smiled a bit and gave him a couple pats. “He really likes you, you know,” Y/n said. Jay looked up from petting Atlas and said, “I'm really starting to like him too.” Softly. Meaningfully. Both of them knowing but not quite acknowledging that he's not just talking about Atlas.
Y/n smiled and looked down shyly, making Jay smile a little bigger but turned away to hide it. Then, Y/n put Atlas in his kennel then locked up, Jay insisting on walking her to her car.
When they got to it, Y/n turned to Jay again. “Thank you for staying…to protect me,” she added with the tiniest of smirks.
Jay gave one of his own. “No problem…I'd hate for anything else to happen to you.”
The sentence shot sparks between them. Y/n’s chest tightened in the best possible way and she smiled, they said goodnight, and Y/n climbed into her car.
Notes: i'm already in love with writing this series. plus its good comedic relief between writing the other heavier ones I've started
As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: I do not own any of the One Chicago shows, characters, or plots
Word count: 954
Voight walked down the middle of the room to meet the new presence, holding his hand out for her to shake. “Good to see you again, L/n,” he said.
The woman, their new addition clearly, smiled and shook his hand just as strong. “You too, Sergeant. Thank you again for having me.”
“Hey, you got a good resume and track record. It’ll be good to have you.”
Hank turned around to face everyone else in the room. “Everyone, this is Detective Y/n L/n, transferred from the 32nd. Dawson, she’s gonna be your new partner. L/n we’re between cases so make yourself comfortable.” He clapped her shoulder and went back into his office.
Y/n faced everyone else and smiled, having known before she would probably have to figure out names on her own so she did some studying before coming in. She faced the latino first. “Antonio Dawson, it’s nice to meet you,” she held her hand out. “I look forward to working with you.” Antonio shook her hand.
“Likewise. The fact that Voight hand-picked you is high praise. Hope you live up to it,” he teased lightly.
Y/n smirked. “That and more, detective,” she said, cocky. She turned to the next closest person, pointing at him. “Alvin Olinsky, I’ve heard a lot of things about you. It’s an honor.”
Al held back his impressed glance. “I see you did your homework on us.” he said, shaking her hand.
“I like to know what I’m getting into. Can’t dive into a case without leads and can’t join a team without knowing its members.”
Erin smiled from where she stood, making her way over. “I like you already. Erin Lindsay, but I’m assuming you already knew that,” she joked.
“Indeed I did. My last team was all men so I can’t tell you how excited I was to see you come up.”
“Don’t let that fool you,” Olinsky said. “She’ll give you hell just like the rest of us.”
“Oh, I’m counting on it,” Y/n smirked. “It’s just nice having someone to relate to.
She pointed at Adam next. “Adam Ruzek, Kevin Atwater,” she pointed at Kevin, “and Jay Halstead.” She made her rounds, shaking everyone’s hands.
“Whatcha got in your hand there?” Ruzek asked, noting a box that looked suspiciously like a food container.
“Brownies!” Y/n said with a bright grin. “Figured it might seem a little lighthearted but I had extras and figured I’d bring them for my new team.”
“You bake?”
She shrugged “When I have the time.” She opened the lid and held them out as an offering. Adam and Kevin practically jumped forward to grab one, making sure to thank her. Y/n grinned like a cheshire cat as they both took a bite at the same time and simultaneously coughed as they bit into something that was most definitely not a brownie.
“What the-?!”
Ruzek looked literally betrayed as he looked over at Y/n, his jaw dropped. “That…is pure evil…”
Al rolled his eyes but was secretly amused that the rookies of course fell for it. Antonio and Erin had small smiles on their faces. Jay held back an eye roll.
Y/n caught the last one. As the morning rolled on and Y/n got set up at her new desk, she kept glancing at Jay. Oh, I’m gonna break him, she thought.
The first week came and went like a breeze. The team got an easy in-and-out case, which seemed like a good way to get Y/n settled with them and let her see how they operate. She fell quickly into a comfortable rapport with everyone, solidifying the other part of her reputation. The brownie incident seemed to get stored in everyone’s long term memory, no longer being in the forefront of their minds. So, Y/n stayed at the office late Thursday night, pulling a roll of bubble wrap from her backpack. She went over to Atwater’s desk, moved his chair aside, and lifted the mat on the ground, placing the bubble wrap under it. She smiled a bit as she replaced the mat and chair before grabbing her things and leaving.
The next morning, Y/n was at her desk as everyone filed in - first as usual. Kevin came upstairs and walked over to his desk, Y/n subtly following him with her eyes as she sipped her coffee.
Jay caught her look from across the room and furrowed his brow, following her line of sight.
Kevin sat down and a surprisingly loud series of pops filled the room and the man jumped out of his seat. “What the hell?!” he yelled, a hand clutching his heart as he looked at the ground. He pushed his seat aside and moved the mat to reveal what it was. He looked over at Y/n, as did the others, nodding his head. “You, huh?”
She smirked. “Really? You thought I was done after the brownies? That was just an introduction,” she grinned mischievously.
“Bubble wrap? Seriously?” Kevin said.
“What? It was calling your name. Loud enough for a reaction but simple enough to start you guys out slow,” she smirked deeper, hinting on the chaos to come.
Laughter rolled through the bullpen. Adam walked over, slung an arm around her shoulders, and shook his head dramatically. “Welcome to Intelligence, L/N. God help us all.”
Y/n laughed and shook her head and the team chuckled; even Al cracked a small smile. Y/N grinned, soaking in the moment as everyone returned to their desks.
Across the room, Jay watched her for a beat longer than he meant to, expression unreadable.
Type: multi-chapter fic; Connor Rhodes x sister!reader
Warnings: canon-typical themes and angst, SEE TRIGGER WARNINGS BELOW
POSSIBLE TRIGGER WARNINGS: mentions of child abuse, mental and physical
Spoilers: S1 spoilers for Connor’s background
Notes: As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: I do not own any of the Chicago One shows, characters, or plots
Word count: 1182
“Useless.”
“Pathetic.”
“If you can’t even handle this, what makes you think you can handle becoming a nurse?”
“You will work in this store!”
Y/n’s eyes shot open and she inhaled deeply, taking a moment to recognize her surroundings. She let the air out in a relieved sigh and threw her legs over the side of her bed. Running a hand through her messy hair, she got up, stretched, and tiptoed to the kitchen.
She got a small pot out, filled it with milk, and set it on the stove; she knew the microwave would probably do the job faster but she didn’t want to risk waking Connor since it was only about 2am. Y/n waited a few minutes, raking through the memories of her dream until she saw steam coming from the pot. She grabbed a mug, poured the pot’s contents into it, then mixed a couple spoonfuls of hot chocolate mix into it. She took her mug, plucked a blanket from the couch, and made her way to the balcony, sliding the door open and shut as quietly as she could before plopping into one of the chairs.
Y/n sighed as she focused on the beautiful architecture of Guadalajara, still lit by city lights. She sipped her hot chocolate as images and themes from her dream continued to resurface.
“Y/n?”
The girl jumped, causing some of her drink to slosh over the side of her mug and land on the ground. She looked over her shoulder to see Connor, a small apologetic smile on his face.
“Sorry. Didn’t realize you were zoned out.” His sister merely shrugged and looked back out at the city. “Mind if I join you?” he asked, pointing to the seat next to her.
“Don’t you have classes in the morning?”
“You do too,” he said pointedly but with a teasing tone.
Y/n tilted her head in defeat. “Touche.”
Connor chuckled and sat down, taking in the view with his sister before leaning closer to her, eyes still forward. “Wanna tell me why you’re up right now?” Y/n sighed. Connor knew her too well. “And don’t tell me it’s nothing, ‘cause we both know that I can tell when you’re lying,” he continued with a little smirk, meeting Y/n’s eyes when she turned towards him, indeed intending on trying to lie.
Connor’s smirk turned into a comforting smile as he held an arm out, inviting her to sit with him. “Come on, kitten. What’s going on in that head of yours?”
Y/n sighed and switched seats to sit next to her brother, curling her legs underneath her and resting her head under his chin.
“You really are like a kitten,” he teased, chuckling when Y/n lightly elbowed him. “For real though, what’s going on?”
Taking one last sip of her drink and setting it on the ground, Y/n absentmindedly played with the edge of the blanket that now surrounded them both.
“Bad dream,” she whispered, staring ahead at the mountains in the distance.
Connor sighed and rested his cheek against her head, rubbing a hand over her arm. “Same thing as before?”
Y/n didn’t know why, but that question broke her. She made a high pitched sniffle, as if trying to hold in a cry, and silently nodded as a couple tears escaped her eyes. “I thought I escaped him, Conner. I thought I would finally be free from his words and accusations. But they still followed me here and they won’t leave me alone,” she whimpered, turning into his chest and hugging him closer.
Connor wrapped his other arm around her and quietly shushed her. “I wish it were that easy to get rid of bad memories, sweetheart,” he lamented. “It’ll take time, but eventually it won’t hurt as much. The dreams won’t plague you as much. You’ll be able to move on.”
“I wish he didn’t affect me this much. But…the things he said, Con, I just…it weighs on me. It hurts, Connor.”
Connor’s jaw set and his gaze on the ground hardened. “That man is a liar, Y/n. I know his words hurt but remember that they aren’t. True. Alright? I’ll remind you every day if I have to. You are smart. You are kind. And you’re the best little sister a guy could ask for. He’s a poor excuse for a father. Especially if he doesn’t see all that, ok? So trust me when I say you’re amazing.”
Y/n smiled a bit through her tears and sighed. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I still might need you to remind me from time to time though.”
“As many times as you need,” he assured her, closing his eyes and pressing a kiss to her head. “I love you.”
“Love you too, Conny.”
The older man let out an exaggerated sigh, not missing the self-satisfied smirk on his sister’s face. “We were having such a nice moment and you had to ruin it.”
“What can I say? I needed some comedic relief,” Y/n said, giggling a bit.
“Comedic? You want something funny? I’ll show you something funny,” Connor threatened.
Y/n didn’t waste any time in jumping off the chair and throwing the blanket over Connor’s head to give herself a chance to run inside, screeching when his hand narrowly missed her when he blindly reached out for her.
Connor pulled the blanket off his head, shaking it in quiet amusement as he listened to his sister’s fading laughter echo through the apartment. A small smile tugged at his lips, but quickly faded. As he replayed the conversation in his head, a frown appeared.
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, eyes scanning the city skyline below.
He’d known for years that their father’s temper would leave marks. But hearing it from Y/n — seeing it in her eyes — reopened something in him he thought he’d learned to live with. But he supposed everyone handled trauma differently. And in Y/n’s case, it wasn’t just verbal/emotional abuse she had to deal with - but physical as well.
The thought made anger rise like bile in his throat. He was her older brother. He was supposed to protect her.
And he left.
He told himself a thousand times that he had no choice. That if he stayed, neither of them would’ve survived the way their father wanted them to. But tonight, watching Y/n tremble over things that should’ve stayed buried, that excuse didn’t sound good enough.
Connor ran a hand down his face, swallowing hard against the lump in his throat. She was safe now. She was with him. He promised himself now that he wouldn’t let anything else happen to her.
He finally stood, sliding the balcony door shut behind him and walking to Y/n’s room. A soft smile returned, gentler this time, as he saw her passed out on her bed. He fixed the covers over her and placed a kiss on her head.
“Sleep well, kitten,” he murmured, before heading back to his own room.
POSSIBLE TRIGGER WARNINGS: light anxiety descriptions, alludes to PTSD
Spoilers: none?
Notes: As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: same as before
Word count: 1087
A few days after the incident, Y/n had gotten a call from someone at the 21st Precinct, letting her know that they had recovered a couple of her things from the mugging earlier in the week and they were holding them at the station for her to pick up. She sighed as she looked in the mirror before leaving the apartment. The bruising under her eye started changing from black and purple to having some shades of green mixing in as the healing process was underway. Shaking her head, she tightened her grip on her bag and headed out the door.
The drive to the station didn’t take long. When she got out of her car and walked up the steps, a couple of patrolmen passing her, her mind flashed with images of officers rushing past her as she bled on the ground.
She shook her head again and walked through the doors. She approached the main desk where an older woman stood, looking rather irritated at her computer.
“Um…excuse me,” Y/n said a little timidly.
The woman’s hands froze over the keyboard, her eyes flicking to the side. She finally turned her head and looked at Y/n over her glasses. “Can I help you?”
“Y-Yes, my name is Y/n L/n, I was called-”
“Reclaiming personal items, right. I need you to fill out these forms, I’ll be back with your things,” she said monotonously, turning around as soon as she set a clipboard on the counter with a clack in front of Y/n, making her jump.
She watched the woman walk away and grabbed the clipboard and pen next to it, trying to control the shaking in her hands that’s come and gone since the attack. She clenched her fist before releasing it and starting on the paperwork.
“Y/n?”
Y/n spun around at the familiar voice calling her name. She turned to face none other than Detective Jay Halstead. Seeing her slightly anxious expression, he gave her a small apologetic smile.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you. I didn’t know you were coming by today,” he said softly, putting his hands in his pockets.
“Yeah I uh, they told me I could come get my things from-from the other night, you know,” she explained, managing a small smile as well.
Jay nodded solemnly before motioning her towards the bench against the wall. “Right. Well, you can sit if you want. It’s a lot of paperwork for something that shouldn’t have happened.”
Y/n took in his reassuring smile and sat down, taking note that he didn’t leave as she continued the paperwork. She let a faint smirk tug at the corners of her lips as she glanced up at him again. “You don’t have to babysit me, you know.”
The detective smiled again and gave a good-natured shrug. “Maybe I just want to make sure you’re ok.”
Their eyes spoke more than words in that moment, and Y/n let herself take comfort in his concern. She debated lying and giving the easier answer of ‘I’m fine’ - the one most people look for when they ask how you’re doing. But seeing the genuine curiosity in his look, she decided to be honest. Taking a deep breath, she relented. “I’m getting there. Still jumpy…sometimes I feel like I hear footsteps behind me.”
Jay took in her controlled answer. Of all the people he’d seen post-trauma, the way she held herself together - how she refused to crumble - it was different. Strong.
Eventually he nodded in understanding. “That’s normal. It fades eventually.”
Y/n furrowed her brow a bit, something in his tone made the statement sound more than just a friendly reassurance…more personal, like he was talking from experience. But she didn’t press. She softened her tone and locked eyes with him again. “Thank you by the way…you know, for that night…I don’t think I ever got to properly thank you.”
“You don’t have to,” Jay said, shaking his head lightly. “Just in the right place at the right time.”
“Maybe. But you still saved my life so…thank you, Detective.”
“Jay,” he corrected, the corners of his lips pulling up a bit.
“Jay.” Y/n smiled lightly. A moment of silence passed between them, Y/n fiddling with the edge of the clipboard.
“How about your arm?” Jay asked, nodding to her bandaged limb.
Y/n gave a breathy laugh. “I’m no stranger to cuts. Occupational hazard,” she lightly joked.
“That right?” he said, a small smirk on his face.
“I work with animals for a living and let’s just say they don’t always appreciate the things we do.”
Jay let out a small chuckle and Y/n smiled a bit, but it quickly faded when her mind wandered to the other survivor from that night. “I still can’t believe I lost him…” she whispered, tears stinging her eyes. “He finally trusted me enough to take him outside the shelter…”
Sensing how upset she was, Jay tentatively sat next to her, leaning down to look into her eyes. “Hey,” he said gently. “We’ll find him. I already put a notice out to Animal Control and to the patrols that go through that area. If he’s out there, someone’ll report it.”
Y/n snapped her head up. “You…you really did that? You didn’t have to…”
“You had one hell of a night. And you were helping him, so…least I can do is help you,” he said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
She let his words sink in for a moment, the sentiment truly touching her. She slowly smiled again. “You’re…really a nice guy, you know that?”
Jay scratched his neck a bit to hide the slight embarrassment and tried a light smirk. “Don’t tell my coworkers, it’ll ruin my reputation.”
She giggled a bit, the sound making Jay’s heart flutter without his permission. The silence that followed was more comfortable this time. Y/n finished the paperwork and by the time she was done, the officer from the front desk came out with her things, a suspicious glance cast between Y/n and Jay.
Y/n quietly thanked her and turned back to Jay, pursing her lips. “I guess that’s it…Bye, Jay.”
“Take care, Y/n,” he said, watching her leave.
Pausing at the door, Y/n looked over her shoulder one more time at him. “If you do hear anything about Atlas…will you let me know?..”
Jay nods. “I promise.”
Y/n smiled faintly again then left. Jay watched her go, a small flicker of…something forming in his chest. Interest? Protectiveness? Or maybe it was something he didn’t even want to name yet.
Summary: Jay Halstead doesn’t think much of Intelligence’s newest detective — until a slow-building prank war turns into something more. And he doesn’t realize how slowly he’s falling until it’s already too late.
Warnings: none
Spoilers: none
Notes: drowning myself further into my jay halstead fix. don't judge me ok?
As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Disclaimers: I do not own any of the One Chicago shows, characters, or plots
Word count: 577
It was a busy morning as usual at the 21st District in Chicago. Up in Intelligence, Atwater and Olinsky were sipping their coffees, the latter explaining to Atwater a few tricks for the field; Burgess and Roman were updating Erin and Jay on something relating to a recent case, and Ruzek was finishing an overdue report on his desk.
“You guys hear we’re getting someone new today?” Adam said, looking for an excuse to prolong filling out paperwork.
“Yeah,” Atwater said. “Voight dropped it like it’s no big deal…which probably means it’s actually a big deal.”
Burgess tilted her head a bit. “Did he say anything about her?”
Jay chimed in this time. “Nope. Just that her name is Detective Y/n L/n and ‘she’ll be here at nine.’ You know how he is.”
“Great. Another mysterious addition. Love that for us,” Erin deadpanned.
Roman raised his brow as he stirred his coffee. “You guys don’t know who L/N is?”
Everyone’s heads turned up to the patrolman.
“Should we?”
“Name doesn’t ring any bells.”
“Why the hell does it matter?” Al said, exasperated already. “Voight’s bringing her in so she’s obviously good.”
Kevin ignored the older detective. “Roman, don’t be dramatic. You know you wanna gossip, so spit it out.”
Roman shrugged, trying to play it cool but failing. “Let’s just say… your new detective? She’s kinda famous."
Burgess furrowed her brow hesitantly. “Famous how? Badge-of-honor famous or ‘fell asleep in her squad car’ famous?”
“Oh, no—good famous,” Roman clarified quickly. “More like ‘class clown of the CPD famous.’”
Kevin laughed at that. “That a real title?”
“Might as well be. L/N knows how to have fun. Lightens up every room she walks into. But don’t get it twisted—she’s smart as hell. Top scores. Good instincts,” Roman supplied.
Jay raised an eyebrow, skeptical. “Class clown? In CPD?”
Roman smiled a bit. “Yeah, man. She pranks people. Harmless stuff. Builds morale. She got away with it ‘cause everyone liked her. Even the instructors.”
Ruzek grinned ferally. “Okay, I like her already.”
Erin scoffed. “Voight’s not gonna like pranks.”
“Oh, he will when she gets him to smile,” Roman said.
“Voight? Smile? Alright, now you’re lying,” Kevin accused.
Roman grinned, taking a sip from his drink. “You’ll see. She’s got that… I don’t know. That energy.”
“Who are you talking about?” Antonio asked, walking in with his own coffee.
“The new girl. L/N,” Adam supplied, not bothering to hide his excitement. “Apparently she’s a prankster.”
Antonio shrugged. “As long as she can do the job, I don’t care if she juggles.”
Erin saw right through his faux apathy. “Oh, you say that now…”
The latino smirked. “Yeah, yeah. We’ll see.”
“Sounds like a nice change around here,” Kim tried for a positive spin.
“Or a headache,” Jay muttered
“Oh relax, Jay,” Erin rolled her eyes. “Not everyone has to be broody to be good at the job.”
“I’m not broody.”
“Yes, you are,” everyone said in unison.
Voight walked out of his office. “She’s not a circus act or one of your gossip chains. She’s a detective. And she’ll fit in fine. Far as the pranks go—” he looked directly at Adam. “—don’t encourage her.”
As the time got nearer to nine, Kim and Roman took their leave. Not long after, a single set of footsteps echoed up the stairs until a h/c woman came into view.
Type: multi-chapter fic; Peter Mills x Herrmann!reader, Christopher Herrmann x daughter!reader
Warnings: canon-typical Chicago Fire action/situations, injury descriptions, mentions of crashing (in the medical sense)
Notes: final chapter!
As always, love and/or constructive/friendly criticism is welcome and encouraged!
Tags: @chbq2
Disclaimers: I do not own Chicago Fire, its characters, or plot
Word count: 1476
Herrmann and his wife entered Y/n’s hospital room, trying to keep themselves collected at the sight of their firstborn hooked up to all kinds of tubes and wires. Dr. Rhodes assured them they would be lessened when the girl woke up before taking his leave to give them some privacy. Peter, still wanting to be respectful, stayed at the door so the Herrmanns had space. But just being able to see his girlfriend breathing easy and mostly cleaned up from the fire set his mind at ease.
In the following few hours, the other members of Firehouse 51 came in so their own racing minds would be relieved and they offered support for the Herrmann family for whatever they might need.
At one point, Boden pulled Peter into an empty room. Anxiety spiked in the candidate’s chest since the last time this happened, he was being called out on his relationship with Y/n. He had a feeling this was the moment where the other shoe would drop.
“Relax, son, it won’t be that bad,” the fire chief jested lightly. Peter huffed a laugh but didn’t say anything. “We need to talk about what happened at the fire. I want you to know that I care deeply about everyone on this team. And I am grateful that Y/n survived and will come back to us. That being said, I cannot let you disobeying a direct order go unpunished. When I say ‘no one goes back in,’ I mean it. Just because one life is at risk doesn't mean it's ok to risk another. Do you understand me?“
Mills, knowing that telling him ‘I would disobey you again if it meant saving her’ wouldn’t do him much good, settled with a, ‘Yes, sir.’
“I don't care what your relationship is - which is another conversation we need to have - I wouldn't have let Herrmann in there either. And knowing what your relationship is, let alone her own father being in the same firehouse, I should have her transferred to a different one. To avoid that, I need you to consider that consequence if anything like this were to happen again. Got it?”
“Yes, chief.”
“I'm giving you a two-shift suspension. Just know I should be doing worse.”
“Yes sir. Thank you.”
Boden let a flash of a smirk on his lips before standing stoically again and nodding his head towards the room next to them. “Go on, get out,” he said softly, no trace of anger or malice in his tone.
Mills smiled a bit before turning on his heel and walking out, letting out a big breath of relief. As he got back into Y/n’s room, Herrmann turned around.
“Well?”
“Two-shift suspension,” Peter reported, knowing Herrmann probably guessed what they had been discussing.
“Psht. That’s a slap on the wrist, kid. Be glad we have Boden as our chief. Any other fire chief would’ve booted your ass out,” he said. He could practically see Mills’ chest tighten at the thought. “But hey, don’t even worry about that. Take your two shifts off, come back after, and everything’ll be back to normal, yeah?”
Peter finally smiled and nodded. His eyes flashed to Y/n and widened when he saw her stir. “Y/n?” He stepped into the room and rounded to the other side of her bed, instinctively grabbing her hand.
“Y/n, sweetheart, can you hear us?” Herrmann said, he and his wife jumping out of their seats.
Y/n squeezed her eyes before cracking them open against the bright hospital lights. “Did Brooke make it?” she whispered through the dryness of her throat.
Herrmann chuckled, an incredulous smile on his face as he shook his head; but he’d be lying if he said he wasn't damn proud that his daughter’s first worry when she woke up was the girl she saved.
“Yeah, honey. She made it,” he informed her.
She smiled as much as her aching head allowed her. After letting her parents fuss over her, she looked over to Peter, who had yet to let go of her hand. She was about to speak when another presence appeared at the door.
“Y/n?” a small voice said.
Everyone in the room turned to see the little girl from the fire with her family. Y/n’s eyes brightened when she saw her. “Brooke!” she (quietly) exclaimed. Herrmann helped raise Y/n up a bit so she could talk a little easier as the girl came further into the room putting some of her weight on one crutch. “How’s your leg?” Y/n asked after taking a drink of water with her mom’s help.
“It’s ok,” Brooke stoically said.
The girl’s parents chuckled. “She has a pretty deep laceration and needed about 15 stitches; she’s supposed to use the crutch to make sure none of them pop. But she’s alive. Because of you.”
Peter’s heart clenched a bit, recognizing the words that Herrmann said to him about Y/n hours earlier.
“The doctor said I’m gonna have a scar but that’s ok - it’ll make me look tough,” Brooke said, making everyone laugh.
Her mother put a loving hand on her head. “Why don’t you tell Y/n what you told us earlier?”
The girl smiled and looked at Y/n again. “I’m gonna be a firefighter when I grow up,” she said proudly, puffing her chest out a bit. “Just like you! ‘Cause girls make the best firefighters.”
“Yeah, they do,” Peter said quietly, a look of pure love on his face as he proudly looked at his girlfriend.
Y/n smiled at him then beamed at Brooke. “That’s right, they do,” she said through happy tears. “I’m glad you’re ok, Brooke. That all of you are ok.”
“We’re about to head home but Brooke was insistent that she see you, we hope you all don’t mind,” her father said, putting a hand on his daughter’s shoulder.
“Not at all,” Herrmann said, equally as moved by Brooke’s appearance. “We’re glad you did.”
The family said goodbye and left the others to have their time alone with Y/n again.
Eventually, the Herrmanns had to leave to get back to their other kids. They were reluctant to leave Y/n but knew she would be in good hands with Peter and also knew others from the firehouse would be in and out to visit.
When her parents were gone, Y/n finally turned to Peter. “Finally alone,” she joked.
Peter chortled and shook his head. “Glad your sense of humor wasn’t injured.”
Y/n let out a dry giggle and smiled. “Are you kidding? It’s the strongest thing in my body.”
Peter shook his head again before looking down at their interlocked hands, his smile slowly fading. Y/n sensed his unease and weakly squeezed his hand.
“So what exactly happened?”
“What do you remember?” Peter asked, looking back up at her.
Staring at the wall for a moment in thought, she said, “We got the girl…ran to the window…I handed her to Kelly…the floor collapsed under me…and I blacked out…I really only have bits and pieces after that but I’m not sure which bits are real.”
Peter nodded. “I ran in ‘cause Cruz was holding your dad back…Boden ordered that no one else go back in ‘cause the smoke turned black…I found you but you were half-buried under rubble and had part of a plank in your abdomen, your oxygen supply had run out so I gave you my mask and got all the stuff off you…and…Y/n,” Peter turned his watery eyes up to hers. “I never want to have to go through that again,” he said, his voice husky. “Dawson said they lost you for a bit on the way to the hospital and had to revive you…and we waited for hours before the doctor came out…I love you too much to lose you and I-”
“Wha-Wait, what did you say?” Y/n exclaimed, having to cough a few times before looking back at her boyfriend, eyes widened in shock. Sure, she and Peter were serious, but they had yet to say the ‘L word.’
Peter rewound his own words until he realized himself what he just said, but when he did, his face softened. He brushed a strand of hair behind Y/n’s ear and held her hand with both of his. “I said…I love you,” he clarified confidently.
