3. Knight In Shining Armor

Remember that time back in October when we thought Linstead is official and Erin and Jay are finally the couple we waited so long for them to be? When we thought we'll get cute scenes with them and seeing them deeply being in love with each other every once in a while? - Yeah. Good times.

Don't get me wrong, the crossover was just wow, but I'm still not over this scene between Erin and Jay at the end and I doubt I'll be in the near future. This episode had the unique opportunity to finally show us that these two are really in a serious and deeper relationship with Jay being there for her and Erin actually letting him comfort her. But instead he just asks her whether she's okay and then walks away...what the hell? The one person in the CPD universe who should and would know better suddenly doesn't? The one person who cared about her and was there for her from episode 1x01 to 3x13 suddenly doesn't care anymore when she needs him most? Makes sense...

A little hug would've been enough. Some encouraging words. A touch. Anything. Instead we get a scene that makes me doubt that these two are still in a relationship. So, dear writers, do it right or leave it but don't give us a scene like this. I don't know who the guy was who just walked away but it was for sure not Jay Halstead...

I already started to fic this and I guess it will come up in chapter 7 or 8 as a flashback...meanwhile here comes Jay Protective Caring Halstead all the way around. It's also the longest chapter I've written yet...

3. Knight In Shining Armor

The displeasing sound of the alarm clock woke them up the next morning. They had somehow made it to the bedroom deep in the night after ending their little scrabble session. Jay groaned as he switched the alarm clock off. He yawned and stretched his body and chuckled as Erin snuggled closer to him as she obviously didn't want to get up, too. He immediately wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she laid her head on his chest.

″Tired, huh?″ he asked and placed a kiss on her hair.

She coughed hardly before she was able to answer.

″Just a little,″ she said hoarsely and looked up to him. Just when he wanted to kiss her lips, his phone rang.

″Seriously?!″ he sighed as he saw that their boss called at 6.30 in the morning.

″What's up Sarge?...Yeah, got it...No worries...I'll be there," he said and put the phone back on the night table.

″What's up?″ Erin asked.

″Antonio's is down now, too. So that makes Voight, Olinsky and me today.″

″And me,″ she added.

″No way. You'll stay here.″

″Jay I'm fine. After last night you should actually know how fine I am,″ she said and winked.

″Well yeah, it was good.″

″Just good?″ she echoed and punched her fist onto his shoulder.

″Breathtaking,″ he replied with a smirk and kissed her.

″Nice saving.″

″Are you sure you're fit enough to work?″

″I am. I feel pretty solid. I'm fine.″

There they were again. These two little words he sometimes hated to hear out of her mouth.

″Erin,″ he sighed as he wasn't sure whether it was the right time for talking about this one topic that strayed in his mind for months now. ″You know you don't have to be the strong girl in front of me, do you?″

″What do you mean?″

″You don't have to tell me you're fine when you're not. I know how strong you are but you don't have to be strong in front of me when you actually don't feel like being it. I also know that's just how you are, but I want to let you know that I want to have the real Erin.″

″Oh, I'm not sure whether you'd like that,″ she said while tracing circles onto his chest.

″Why shouldn't I?″ he asked and tried to lock eyes with her.

″Because I'm anything else but perfect. Actually I'm pretty far away from it,″ she answered, keeping her gaze focused on the pattern of his shirt.

″Funny thing there, I'm not perfect, too. Maybe that's the reason why we are so perfect for each other, huh?″

″Yaah maybe.″

″No honestly. Life isn't perfect so humans aren't perfect either. Imperfections are what form us, what make us who we are and in fact imperfections make us perfect.″

″Well, that was quite intellectual, even for you Jay Halstead,″ she laughed.

″I know. But just imagine how unbelievably hot I'd be if I was perfect...you'd burn your hands every time you'd touch me,″ he said and chuckled.

″Oh yeah, how could and would I ever handle that?″ Erin replied with a laughter.

″Good question. But seriously Erin,″ he said and softly grabbed her chin so that she had to look him in the eyes. ″If you feel bad, tell me and I'll try my best to make you feel better. If you want to cry, do it and I'll be there to wipe your tears away. If you feel fragile, show me and I'll hold you in my arms as tight as possible and take care that you won't break. You are strong and tough and stubborn, but I know that you're also vulnerable and fragile and sensitive. Just show me all of your sides and not only those you think I like most. I'm totally okay with the real Erin, because I love you for who you are, not for who you're trying to be.″

She had to swallow hard. He knew her so well and she couldn't express how much she loved him for that. He had the gift to always choose the right words and wasn't afraid of talking about things she actually didn't want to hear, but needed to hear.

″I'll try,″ she whispered and in that moment this was simply all she was able to say.

″Good,″ he said and kissed her forehead.

″But I honestly feel good today. And I promise I'll take my meds at work.″

″Alright, I'm okay with that but promise me one more thing: you'll tell me if it gets too much for you,″ he said and softly stroked her cheeks only to recognize that they were still warm. Not as burning as the day before but still warmer than normal.

″I will,″ she replied as she saw how worried he still was. But she felt really better than the previous days. The headaches were gone and she didn't feel as floppy and exhausted anymore.

XxXxXxXxXxX

When they walked into the bullpen, Hank was already waiting for Jay. His face got a surprised gaze when he saw Erin walking up the stairs, too.

″Didn't expect you here,″ he greeted her.

″Yeah, just wanted to say nice to see you, too,″ she responded gruffly.

″I told you only to come back when you're healthy.″

″That's why I'm here. I'm fine,″ she said and sat down on her desk.

Hank exchanged a quick glance with Jay which she didn't miss.

″Hey, you don't have to ask him whether I'm fine or not. I just told you I am, isn't that enough?″ she asked as her voice was rising. Hank locked eyes with her for some seconds and obviously bit his tongue.

″Alright then, ″ he shrugged and went back into his office.

XxXxXxXxXxX

After working the desk for two hours in the morning, Mouse was finally able to ping the phone of their main suspect Franco Botelli and located him at an old warehouse ten kilometres outside of the city.

″So, Halstead, Lindsay, you go left, Alvin and me go to the right and Burgess and Roman will cover the back,″ Hank said in front of the warehouse. Everybody nodded. Hank raised his hand and counted to three with his fingers and when he reached three, all of them entered the building.

Erin was close behind Jay when they found what they've been looking for.

″Chicago Police, don't move,″ Jay yelled.

Botelli turned around, looked at them for not even one second and started running. Erin and Jay chased him, wanted to make him run towards the back entrance. But of course Botelli wasn't stupid. He turned left and ran up the stairs to the upper floor. Erin was barely able to breathe as she ran behind Jay and she felt like her lungs were about to explode any second. The only thing that kept her running was that Jay needed her as back-up. She would never risk anything happen to him, so she held on. They raced up the stairs. Shortly before they were on the upper floor, Erin had the feeling to suffocate. She wasn't able to breathe anymore, her head hurt, she saw stars dancing around her and before she was able to say anything or to hold tight on the banister, the darkness was already closing in.

Jay immediately turned around as he heard bad, loud rumbling directly behind him. His heart literally stopped beating as he saw Erin falling down the stairs.

″Erin,″ he yelled with a voice full of panic and ran down the stairs. He didn't care that he was losing the suspect. All he cared about was his girl.

″Erin,″ he shouted again as he knelt down next to her. She was unconscious and had a bleeding laceration on her hairline. Her pulse was racing as he checked it and her breathing was unsteady. With shaky hands he pulled his phone out of his pocket and called for back-up and an ambulance.

″Erin, come on,″ he said again, trying everything to get her concious. He couldn't remember that he ever felt as helpless as he did right now. He didn't know what to do and seeing his girl laying there and not knowing how serious her injuries were scared the hell out of him. It felt like an eternity until the rest of the unit was finally there.

″What happened?″ Hank shouted as he also knelt down on the floor.

″She...I...stairs...,″ Jay spluttered and covered his head in his hands. The whole time he's been able to stay more or less calm and focused but now he couldn't keep it together anymore.

″Halstead, breathe. What happened?″ his boss ask again.

″We were chasing him up the stairs...she was behind me. And then I just heard her falling down. Maybe she collapsed...I don't know.″

″Is the suspect still up there?″

″Guess so,″ Jay shrugged. Botelli was the last thing he thought and cared about right now.

″Alright, Al, Burgess, Roman, go up there and find him,″ he ordered and the three of them passed by and went up the stairs. ″And we're going to bring her out,″ Hank said.

″Don't. Move. Her,″ Jay immediately shouted at his boss.

″It will save lots of time when the paramedics don't have to come in here,″ he replied, rising his voice and making sure that he was the boss.

″I said don't move her. We don't know what kind of injuries she has, so she stays exactly like this and we will wait here until the ambulance is here,″ Jay said loudly as his eyes angrily twinkled towards Hank. This was certainly not the right time for a new round of power games between the two of them but Jay didn't want to risk anything when it came to Erin.

″Halstead if she dies because the paramedics Need too long to find us in here...-″

″Then go the hell out and show them were we are!″ Jay yelled. He wasn't able to hold it back anymore. It was already hard enough not to punch Voight in his face. Hank stared at him for some seconds and then left him alone with Erin.

″Erin, please hold on,″ he whispered desperately and stroked her cheeks. He checked her breathing and her heartbeat every five seconds but it felt like a lifetime until the paramedics finally came.

Erin got an IV on her arm, an oxydgen tube on her nose and a ruff around her neck. They picked her up with the spineboard and carried her out of the warehouse carefully. As soon as she was in the ambulance, Jay jumped in there too. While driving to Chicago Med and holding her hand, he sent silent prayers to heaven. Prayers that she had no serious injuries and that she was going to be alright. Prayers that he wouldn't lose her.

XxXxXxXxXxX

Jay sat in the waiting area of the ED, eagerly waiting for any kind of news. He was not allowed to be in the examination room with her. He's been sitting there for one hour already but it felt so much longer. They had to do different tests and also a CT. He knew that all of these things took time, but it made him nervous not to hear anything.

She had to be alright. He needed her to be alright. He should have known that she wasn't fit enough to chase a suspect over minutes. He should've been behind her, not ahead of her. He should've been able to prevent this. He covered his head in his hands and rubbed his eyes, tried to calm himself down again.

On one hand he was glad that none of his team members were here as they still had to deal with Botelli, on the other hand, some distraction and support would've been nice.

″How is she?″ a familar raspy voice suddenly asked right next to him. Jay turned his head around and saw his boss sitting right there.

″Don't know anything yet. She's still in there,″ he answered and pointed to the trauma room.

″You told me she was fine,″ Hank said and Jay thought he hasn't heard right. Immediately he felt his anger coming up again.

″What? I didn't tell you anything!″

″You nodded this morning when I looked at you, Halstead.″

″Yeah. Because. She. Was. Fine,″ Jay spat, trying to stay calm. ″She felt better, she looked better.″

″But obviously she wasn't better. You should've known that. You should've made her stay at home.″ Jay could feel the tension rising up between the two of them.

″I'm not her babysitter. We're talking about Erin here, when she wants to go to work she does, no matter what someone else says. You know that.″

″You promised me you have her back 24 hours a day,″ Hank almost shouted as he got up from his chair. ″If she dies or has serious injuries with long-term affects it's all your fault Halstead.″

Now Jay wasn't able to stay calm anymore. He jumped up from his chair, his face only centimeters away of Hanks.

″This is not my fault! The only thing I'm kicking myself for is that I wasn't behind her to catch her. That she was my back-up and not I hers. But you can't blame me for the decisions she makes!″ Jay yelled as he narrowed his eyes. There have been a lot of critical moments between them in the past but he was sure the tension had never been higher than right now.

″But I do. This is your fault,″ Hank now also yelled, pointing his finger to Jay's chest. Jay clenched his fist, ready to throw one specific punch.

″Hey guys, this is a hospital!″ None of them reacted to what Will Halstead just had said. They kept on focusing each other with narrowed, angry eyes.

″Jay!″ Will said insistent and pulled his brother away before he was able to do something he'd regret later.

Jay took some deep breaths, trying not to run back to Hank and finish what he wanted to do so badly.

″How is she?″ he asked his brother instead, swallowing down his anger.

″She's okay. More or less. No broken bones or internal injuries.″

Jay exhaled a deep breath of relief and looked to Hank who seemed just as relieved as him.

″What does more or less mean?″ Jay asked, sensing there was more to the story.

″She has a concussion, two partially fractured ribs, a sprained wrist and she of course has some bruises. But there's something that worries us more.″

″Will, could you please stop talking in secrets?!″

″She has a pneumonia. A really bad one. She has high fever and her breathing is low. She gets antibiotics in large doses and is on oxydgen and for the moment we hope that we don't have to intubate her.″

″Pneumonia?! Just this morning she told me she feels good. I thought it was only a cold, a flu at the most. I mean, how can she even feel good with a pneumonia?″

″It's possible that she really felt good this morning, due to the meds she took. I mean, these were only light antibiotics, but antibiotics nonetheless. They make you feel better in a short time. But running was too much for her. That's most probably why she collapsed. She couldn't breathe anymore.″

″But she's going to be alright? I mean, she's out of the woods, right?″ Hank now asked and for the first time Jay couldn't see anger but endless sorrow in his eyes.

″She's stable, her injuries are harmless but her fever and her breathing troubles require close monitoring. A protracted pneumonia isn't a walk in the park,″ Will explained.

″Can I see her?″ both Jay and Hank asked at the same time. They looked into each others eyes like they were teenagers fighting for the same girl.

″Uhm...yeah...we'll bring her up to the ICU but only one person is allowed to be with her at the same time.″

″Alright then, Halstead you go and inform the rest of the unit, I'll be with Erin.″ For the second time this afternoon Jay thought he hasn't heard right.

″You gotta be kidding me. I'll stay with her and when you're lucky, I'll leave her side for ten minutes later and you can be with her then,″ Jay loudly said, feeling his anger coming back.

″Halstead, you know that this is an order from your supervisor. Go and...-″

″I. Don't. Care,″ Jay interrupted his boss, turned around and went straight into the examination room. There was no way anyone could seperate him from his girl for even one second longer.

XxXxXxXxXxX

″She will most likely sleep throughout the rest of the day due to the meds she's on now,″ Will explained his brother after they brought Erin to the ICU.

Jay only nodded as he took one of the chairs and placed it right next to her bed.

″Call me if you need anything, I'll be down in the ED again.″

″Yaah, I will, thanks,″ Jay replied and sat down, immediately taking Erin's cold hand in his warm hands, trying not to hurt her as the IV was on the back of her hand. Her right hand was bandaged, a plaster covered the wound on her hairline and she had a tube at her nose that supplied her body with the oxydgen it needed. Her facial color was just as white as the sheets she laid in. Jay sighed. A little more than 12 hours ago his world has been perfect. The fact that the same girl he laughingly joked around with last night was now in the ICU, connected to a monitor that controlled her heartbeat, let him shiver. Life was short. And unpredictable. He knew that. Most likely he knew it even better than many others.

″Erin,″ he started to talk as he couldn't handle the silence with the penetrating beeps of the monitors anymore. ″Please don't ever scare me like this again. You understand? I can't handle this. I mean, I can't handle seeing you injured and unconscious. And I can't handle the thoughts of losing you. I know it's not that dramatic and you're going to be alright but damn it Erin, when I saw you falling down I thought...″ he stopped and had to swallow a big lump in his throat. He felt how tears burned in the corner of his eyes and winked some times to keep them from falling. He took some deep, long breaths of air but it didn't help as some tears slid down his face anyways. For the first time in many years Jay Halstead cried. Not because of the current situation or Erin's condition but because of the thought that he could've lost her today. A different way of falling, a different angle and she'd maybe have broken her neck, leaving him behind and making him lose her. The love of his life. That just perfectly described what she was for him. From the moment they met for the very first time he had a crush on her and it only took him some weeks to figure out that she was the one. The one he wanted to wake up next to every morning and fall asleep next to every evening. The one who would one day be his wife and the mother of his children. The one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. They didn't have the easiest way until they've been at the point where they now finally were and he knew exactly that there was still a rough path ahead when they'd one day start talking about marriage and children. Most likely due to Erin's past and her commitment issues. But Erin Lindsay was nonetheless all he ever wanted in his life and she'd always be all he ever wants.

″I think I just want to say I love you,″ he said and leaned over her to place a soft kiss on her forehead. ″More than you will ever know,″ he whispered as he sat back on his chair.

For the next hours he just sat there, held her hand and talked to her from time to time. Sometimes she stirred in her sleep but she never woke up. Doctors and nurses came and went, changed her infusion and checked on her breathing. Everything seemed to be well. The rhythmic sounds of the heart monitor made him tired and sometimes he dozed off only to start up again some minutes later. It was around seven in the evening when Hank joined him.

″Go and get yourself a coffee Halstead,″ he said and his voice sounded surprisingly friendly.

″I'd rather stay with her, in case she wakes up,″ Jay answered, looking at his sleeping girlfriend.

″Halstead please, get some fresh air and eat something. I'll take care of her,″ Hank said while he also looked at Erin.

Jay sighed. He's been with her for more than six hours now and he had to admit, he was really hungry. And last but not least it was Hank's right to be with her for some time. She was his daughter after all. Maybe not by blood, but that didn't matter. When he learned one thing since he was in Intelligence, it was that family wasn't always about blood. It was much more about the people in your life who want you in theirs, the ones who accept you for who you are. The ones who would do anything to see you smile and who love you no matter what. And there was no doubt that Hank Voight loved Erin as much as a father can love his daughter.

″Alright,″ Jay said. He squeezed Erin's hand a little tighter and got up from the chair.

Hank nodded in response as he walked past Jay.

″How is she holding on though?″ Hank asked.

″She's doing good,″ Jay answered as he turned around again and looked at the older man. ″Listen, I'm sorry for being so furious earlier.″

″Look, I also overreacted. And I can't blame you for caring and being protective about your girlfriend Halstead. The whole situation...I was worried about her,″ Hank shrugged.

″So was I.″

″I know. And now go and get yourself something to eat, I heard your stomach crawling from outside the room.″

″Yeah...uhm, see you in a bit,″ Jay answered and left the room while Hank now took the seat next to Erin's bed.

″You scared me today, kid,″ was the only thing he said as he laid his hand of top of hers. ″A lot,″ he added and stroked her fingers with his thumb. Hank Voight was usually not a man of big emotions but as he now saw the girl, that was the daughter he and his wife always prayed for, connected to monitors and all kind of tubes, he had to swallow hard. She was one of the few reasons why he somewhen started to get his life together again after Camille's death and right now he tried everything to keep his mind from thinking about what it would do to him if he'd lose her too.

While trying do distract his mind from this unbearable thoughts, Erin started to get unsettled and her eyes slowly fluttered open.

″Erin? Erin you hear me?″ he asked as she obviously seemed to be unoriented.

She looked up to the ceiling, still trying to figure out where she was.

″You're at Chicago Med,″ Hank said. She turned her head a bit and looked at him.

″Hank,″ she whispered and closed her eyes again.

″Yeah, I'm here, everything's fine.″

″W...Where's...Jay?″ she asked with barely no voice and immediately had to cough. She gasped loudly when she felt a stabbing pain in her ribs.

″Easy kiddo. Try not to speak,″ he said and was quite thankful that she was on high doses of antibiotics so she wasn't able to see that he was kinda hurt by the fact that she immediately asked for Jay although he was there.

″Jay didn't leave your side until I ordered him to do so ten minutes ago. He's eating something and will be back soon.″

″What happened?″ she asked but that ended in another painful cough.

″Don't you remember?″

She lightly shook her head.

″You took a pretty nasty fall on the stairs in that warehouse. You have a concussion, two of your ribs are quite damaged and your wrist in sprained. You collapsed there due to the pneumonia you have.″

″Pneumonia?″ she asked, tried to take a deep breath and closed her eyes when she felt her lungs burning.

″Yep. A bad one. You should've gone to a doctor. Halstead should've taken you to a doctor instead of just bringing you meds he got from his brother who is a doctor by the way.″

Although she was on meds and felt dizzy, she did not miss how his voice got pissed.

″This is not Jay's fault. He wanted me to see a doctor but I...-″ her raspy voiced trailed off and she coughed again, but a lot harder this time. She gasped for air and had again the feeling to suffocate.

″Erin relax, okay? Try to relax,″ he said and already stood up from his chair. Erin inhaled some times and felt how the feeling of suffocating left.

″Good,″ Hank said, squeezed her hand and walked out to get a doctor. When he was out of the room he saw Jay walking down the hall. Jay almost started running when he saw Hank. He immediately knew that something had happened. Otherwise Hank would never leave Erin's side.

″What happened?″ he asked with a nervous voice and some serious questionmarks on his face.

″She woke up five minutes ago. But she has to cough all the time which is really painful and it causes more breathing troubles, so I go and get a doctor who gives her a sedative or something,″ Hank explained.

″Okay,″ Jay sighed and walked into the room.

″Hey baby.″

Erin turned her head and her lips formed a weak smile when she saw him.

″Jay,″ she whispered as he went to her bed, sat down on its edge, leaned over her and placed a kiss on her forehead.

″Ssshhh, don't talk,″ he said and softly stroked her cheek with his thumb. ″Everything is good, I'm here and I won't leave.″

″I know,″ she answered but it ended in another bad cough and another gasp for air. His heart ached when he saw how she squinched up her face due to the pain she felt.

″Hey, hey, look at me,″ he said and she gazed his eyes with hers. ″Good. And now breathe easily. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale.″ She kept her gaze focused on his face and did exactly what he'd said and felt how her breathing got easier and less painful.

″Better?″ he asked as he saw her body starting to relax.

She nodded in response.

″Good. Hank's looking for you doctor who gives you something against the pain.″

″I don't need...-″ she started to protest but Jay cut her off instantly.

″You do,″ he said and looked into her aguish, tired eyes. He saw in her face that every breath she took hurt her. And of course he was still more than just a little worried but he tried his best not to show her.

A moment later, Hank and the doctor came back into the room. Jay recognized him as Dr. Simmons who's been there to check on her some times already during the previous hours.

″How do you feel?″ he asked Erin and checked her respiration and heart beat with his stethoscope.

″Not good,″ she just answered, trying not to speak too much, but she had to cough hardly nonetheless. She groaned as the pain hit her again and gasped. In addition, her headaches slowly increased and made her feel dizzy and nauseous.

″Alright, I'll give you a sedative that you'll sleep through the night without coughing. How is your head?″

″It aches. And I feel nauseous,″ she sighed and closed her eyes.

″I'll also give you some painkillers and something against nausea. I'll be back in a minute,″ he said and left the three of them alone.

Dr. Simmons came back some minutes later and injected three different meds into her IV.

″I'll go home now, get well soon, kid,″ Hank said shortly after Dr. Simmons had left them again and placed a kiss on her hair.

″Keep me updated,″ he said as he walked past Jay and gave him a short pat on the back.

″I will,″ Jay promised and followed him to the door to dim the garish, cold hospital light. He went back to Erin's bed and out of an impulse he climbed into her bed and laid down right next to her. As she wasn't fully asleep yet, she immediately snuggled closer to him and laid her head on his chest so he was able to wrap his arm around her shoulders. He covered his face in her hair and smelled the sweet scent of her shampoo.

″I love you,″ he mumbled and kissed her hair while her body more and more relaxed in his arms.

XxXxXxXxXxX

After laying there and holding her tightly for about an hour, Will Halstead entered the room for a quick visit.

″Hey knight in shining armor, I don't think this is allowed in the ICU,″ Will laughed when he saw the two of them.

″Honestly, I don't care,″ Jay replied while looking down at his peacefully sleeping girlfriend.

″Never assumed you would,″ Will winked with a smile a sat down in the chair. ″How is she doing?″

″Could be better but also worse,″ Jay sighed. ″She was awake for about twenty minutes earlier but she had to cough all the time which must've hurt like hell with two broken ribs. She also had headaches and felt nauseous due to them and I think every single part of her body hurts although she didn't say anything.″

″You normally only feel the things that hurt most. She'll feel all the other bruises and sprains as well in the next couple of days I'm afraid.″

″Yaah, most likely. Dr. Simmons gave her a sedative and some painkillers and something against nausea. Not to forget the infusion that keeps her hydrated and the additional infusion with antibiotics she gets every some hours. I mean, this is...much, isn't it?″ Jay asked with an insecure voice.

″It is. But she needs it and it will help her,″ Will assured his brother.

″It better does. What do you think, how long will it take?″

″Until she can go home or until she's fit again?″ he responded.

″Both.″

″Hard to say. I think she'll be here for at least five days. Maybe even more, depends on her condition and recovery. And it will take some time until she'll be back at 100 percent. Could easily be anything from three to five weeks.″

″Three to five weeks?″ Jay echoed and sighed as he looked at his brother.

″Yep. Guess it will be a joy to jolly her along at home for weeks, huh?″ Will chuckled. During the past six months he got to know his brother's girlfriend and it didn't take him long to find out that she was always on fire.

″Tell me about it,″ Jay laughed. ″Well, we'll work something out there.″

″Yaah, you should. But believe me, in the first two weeks she won't feel like going to work. Going from her bed to the kitchen and back will be tiring enough.″

″Hard to imagine, but we'll see,″ Jay said and placed another soft kiss on Erin's hair.

″So, you and Hank again, huh?″ Will changed the topic.

″Don't you have to work or something?″ Jay asked, intensly trying to avoid to talk about what had happened earlier.

″Nope, my shift is over and I thought my little brother would appreciate it when I spend my free time with him,″ he grinned.

″I do. I just don't feel like talking about Hank Voight.″

″Jay, you nearly used your boss as punching bag today,″ he said and now his voice was serious.

″We've both been furious and we talked about it.″

″You did?″

″I told him I was sorry, he told me he also overreacted. Done.″

″Was that the short version?″

″No, that was all of the story. I mean honestly, all of this was just another example of Hank Voight trying to give me a hard time. Another proof that he still doesn't accept me as the man in Erin's life. He blamed me for her accident because he wanted me to feel bad.″ Jay said and tried keep his voice low. ″As if I didn't feel bad enough already. I should've been behind her, should've caught her. So did he ever really think I'd leave her alone and let him be with her after everything that happened today?″

″Maybe he wanted to test you.″

″Test me?″

″Yeah. Whether he's able to browbeat you or whether you stand up to him and fight for what you want,″ Will explained.

″Or maybe he's just an ass,″ Jay shrugged with a bitter laughter.

″Maybe he was just as worried as you,″ Will suggested.

″Or maybe he's just an ass,″ Jay noticed again.

″Well yeah, or that,″ Will laughed and yawned. He checked his clock and got up from his chair.

″Alright bro, we should go, it's quite late already.″

″There's no way I'm going to leave her tonight,″ Jay answered.

″I don't think you're allowed to be here overnight.″

″I don't care about any stupid rules today. She needs me.″ Will saw his brothers eyes and he knew that there was no chance he would leave Erin this night. Jay's always been the guy who cared about the people he loved and who did his best to protect them and be there for them. When he'd greeted his brother as knight in shining armor earlier, he really meant it, because he knew Jay would do anything and even more for the woman that slept in his arms.

″Alright,″ he shrugged. ″The nurses will kick you out anyway,″ he added with a grin.

″Well, they can try,″ Jay smirked and his brother laughed in response.

″Maybe I should stay here just to see this.″

″It'll be fun.″

″There's no doubt about it. But my next shift is in eight hours, so I'd rather catch some sleep.″

″Thanks for coming man,″ Jay said when his brother was at the door.

″Sure, always. Take care of your girl and sleep well. See you in the morning then,″ Will winked and left the room.

As the room was almost completely silent again now, Jay felt his own tiredness coming through. He changed his position in the small hospital bed a little as he started to feel uncomfortable. The sound of the rhythmic beeps of the heart monitor and Erin's steady breathing slowly lulled him to sleep.

XxXxXxXxXxX

Jay startled from his sleep around three o' clock in the morning when Erin started to get unsettled. He immediately got worried when he heard her breathing heavily.

″Mom! Mom where are you?″ she whined out of nothing. Jay looked down at her and saw that her eyes were still closed.

″Mom? Don't leave me,″ she whimpered again.

″Erin, hey, everything is good,″ he said and tightened his grasp around her shoulders. ″I'm here, you're just having a nightmare or something.″

He softly stroked her cheek with his thumb and as soon as he touched her skin, he realized what was going on. She was burning hot what meant she was obviously in a delirium. He never felt someone that burning ever before and this fact scared him just as much as seeing her fall down earlier. His heart started racing in his chest and without hesitation he jumped out of the bed and ran out of the room, looking for anyone who could help...

I know this was quite long but I didn't know where else to end it. Hope you liked it anyway! :)