One date.

"Halstead, you know we can't," Erin replied, with a tinge of sadness hindering in her voice. "We can't. Just picture what Voight would do."

"He'd wring my neck. Maybe point a gun at me, if I'm lucky," Jay retorted, bringing the mug to his lips. His soft, pink lips that Erin had kissed only days before. Her head was still reeling from that night. To say she didn't enjoy it was an understatement. God, she did, so much. Everything felt right. She wasn't on edge or confused-Jay provided her with a sense of home...that feeling she longed for ever since Voight had taken her in. There was just something about the attractive and charming detective that made Erin's heart flutter and skip a beat.

Erin laughed, moving closer to where Jay was standing, but being sure not to expose either of them completely to the rest of the unit; they were gathered around Ruzek, observing intently on the card trick he was demonstrating. She could feel the sexual tension between them; it was always there.

"You should've seen what Voight did to the last guy I brought home," she replied, a teasing smirk starting to form. "He was seconds away from kicking his ass out of the house."

Jay sucked in a breath.

"But he likes me..." he started, looking at Erin in confusion, "right?"

"He does right now, but you know how he is with the whole "over protective thing." They both sighed, a peaceful silence overtaking them.

"I think it's best if we keep things professional right now," Erin finally said, breaking the silence. Jay gave her a look that said "yeah, right," but he didn't argue with the firm stare she shot back at him. Just shrugging he nodded his head.

"Yeah, but you know damn well we won't be able to for long." He gave her a smile and wink before walking out and joining the others.

"Dammit," Erin muttered under her breath.

...

"Jay!" she screamed, seeing his motionless body ten feet away from her. He was down and his gun lay a few inches in front of him. Everything happened so quickly; one minute he was on the heels of the suspect, the next minute the suspect quickly pivoted on his heels and shot, nonstop, at Jay. Erin had quickly moved from her position from behind their car, but it was too late. Jay had taken several hits. Tears started to form in her eyes as she, without any hesitation, ran towards him.

"Halstead's down, I repeat Halstead is down," she yelled into her com. Voight's husky voice met her ears seconds later.

"We're on our way. Where's our target?"

Erin was breathing heavily and could barely focus.

"Escaped. Don't know where. We need paramedics on the scene, now."

She looked back down at he partner. Pools of blood had started to form around his head and chest. She took his hand in hers.

"Stay with me, Halstead," she whispered, the water from her eyes starting to fall. Se knew being a cop was hard. She didn't know it'd be this hard. Quite frankly, she did; she just didn't want to think about that fact. She laid two fingers to his neck, checking for a pulse. It was there, beating slowly and faintly.

"Thank god." She gently put her forehead to his chest, the sound of sirens in the distance calming her racing heart.

"You're going to be okay."

...

"His surgery went well. He has suffered from several fractured bones and the bullet just missed his head. The protective vest he was wearing prevented further damage. He should be okay with quite a bit of physical therapy and a lot of recovery time," the young nurse explained to Voight and then the rest of the intelligence team.

Erin heard numerous sighs and quiet chants of joy around her, but she herself still hadn't gotten over the events that had happened just hours before. She couldn't help but feel it was her fault Jay got shot. He was her partner. She was supposed to have his back. Every damn time they put themselves in danger and out in the field, she was responsible for his safety. Her heart sank. She was slowly coming to the realization that maybe there was more to her partnership with Jay than "just partners." But she kept wanting to fight those feelings for as long as she could. She didn't want to acknowledge to him, but mainly herself, that there could possibly be someone new she'd have to open herself up to, make herself vulnerable to, and risk every emotion her heart felt for. She liked the idea, of course,-didn't every girl want to be in love?-yet she grew up to depend on herself. It was hard for her to let anyone see into her soul, beyond the hard exterior she shielded her heart with. But Jay knew just what to say, what to do, how to look at her that slowly started to break that wall. And she was, for the first time in her life, okay with it. She smiled to herself. Knowing that the one person who was able to make himself known to her heart was safe comforted her.

"When can we see him?" Erin whispered, tucking a few strands of her messy hair behind her ear.

The nurse met her gaze and smiled warmly.

"Only a couple of visitors are allowed in his room at a time. We don't want to overwhelm any patients when their anesthesia is wearing off. I'd say two to three at the most," she answered, while jotting down something on the clipboard she was holding. "He's being moved to his room now, so it'll be a little while before he's ready for anyone. I'll come in and inform you when he's lucid and ready. "

Erin nodded her head and tucked her hands into her coat's pockets. She suddenly felt chilly.

"I'm going to go walk. You know, clear my head," she said, turning to Voight. He looked worried but knew at a time like this all Erin needed was space.

"Lindsay, come back in one piece," she heard him call after her as she was exiting the waiting room. The automatic exit doors opened and Erin was met with a a cold breeze. She pulled the beanie that was keeping her ears nice and cozy tighter around her head before walking off to the side of the building and leaning against its solid wall. She saw her breath catch in the cold Chicago air and float away. Her eyes fell closed softly and all she could do was breath in and out slowly.

...

"Hey, how're you holding up?" Erin heard a soft voice to the right of her ask. She knew it was Burgess...the sound of her handcuffs and keys rattling against one another kind of gave it away too. Though they weren't two peas in a pod, Erin thought fondly of Burgess; she was a skilled cop. And had potential. She'd be happy working along side her one day.

"I'm okay. Not great."

"I'm sure. It must've been traumatic for both of you," she reasoned, looking down at her shoes and scraping some snow around.

"Yeah. It funny," Erin started, turning towards the brunette, "I don't remember Jay actually going down. I just remember him falling to the ground and crying out in pain. It's hard to watch the one person who has your back go down. And all you can do is just watch."

"Yeah, Atwater and I haven't gone through anything like that, but I can feel how worried you are."

"I don't know why I'm so nervous. It's not the first time Halstead had been targeted. This time, this time it was different. I didn't have time to cover him. And by the time I had a chance, it was too late. He could've lost his life today because of me. I didn't do enough. I should've tailed him rather than stay behind the doors of our squad car." Erin knew she was ranting, but when Burgess said nothing, she took is at as a sign to continue.

"You did all you could. He knows that. And knowing Jay, he'll forgive you. You do know he has a soft spot for you, right?"

Erin was taken aback by her remark but smiled to herself.

"Really?"

"C'mon, Erin, someone would need to be physically blind not to see it. Maybe he knew how much danger you two were getting yourselves in, and he wanted to protect you. Maybe he took those shots on purpose knowing you'd be safe."

Erin didn't want to believe what Burgess was telling her. That would mean Jay had put his own personal feelings for her before Voight's orders.

"So much for keeping it professional," she sighed

"Is there something else there? Than just partners? Than just "I need to have his back?" Burgess questioned. It was a damn good question. And Erin's eyes were finally being opened to the answer.

"I don't know."

"You do know," Burgess shot back.

"Maybe I don't want to know," Erin replied with a hint of bitterness. Burgess backed off immediately, distancing herself.

"I mean maybe my heart isn't ready to let someone in...again. I don't want to get in over my head," she explained, with a gentler tone. Burgess kept her gaze concentrated on Erin.

"Jay isn't the type of guy that would hurt you. He cares so much. Hurting you would be hurting him too. It never hurts to try. A better opportunity than now may not come up again. He could be dead by next week. With our line of work comes risks and sacrifices. Is your job more important than your happiness?"

Erin's phone buzzed.

"Voight and Antonio are going to see Jay," she read aloud.

Burgess nodded and turned on her heels. "Just think about it," she called over her shoulder.

How did she get so good at being a therapist?

...

"I'm glad to see you," he smiled.

His bruises were easily visible and he had several cords attached to various parts of his body. The monitor to his right was beeping steadily, which relaxed Erin a bit. She couldn't help but smile when his deep voice that she was so used to and comforted by reached her ears. She got up from where she was sitting across the room and walked over to his bedside, placing her hand on top of his. She avoided touching any of the medial equipment but made sure he could feel her grasp.

"How're you doing?" her voice asked, wavering a bit. She gazed down, getting a better look at just how many injuries he had suffered from.

"To say nothing hurts like hell would be a lie," he joked. "But I'm better. The anesthesia has finally worn off. And the whole gang stopped by. You're the last one."

"I wanted to have the most with you," she whispered, taking a seat on the edge of his hospital bed but never turning her gaze away. She bit her lower lip and sighed.

"I'm sorry," Erin finally said.

Jay gave her a confused look before flashing her a reassuring smile. Erin couldn't stop the tears from falling onto the sheets, though. Jay brought his non damaged hand to her cheek, resting it there for a few minutes.

"Hey, hey, I'm okay."

"No you're not. This is my fault. If I had covered you, we wouldn't be in this mess."

"We?" he asked cocking an eyebrow. Erin knew what he was hinting at.

"No, I mean, you. You wouldn't be in this mess if I had your back. It all just happened so fast."

Her eyes had slowly moved down to focus on her hand that was intertwining her fingers with Jay's.

"I did what needed to be done."

"We didn't catch him, wise guy," she teased, smirking just a little.

"Maybe not. But you're here. And not hurt. That's all I care about," he answered genuinely, looking at Erin with affection.

How was it that even when he wasn't trying, Erin fell more and more for her partner? Maybe it was because she wasn't just his partner. She was his friend. She was the person he cared most about.

She didn't have time to second guess herself; she just went for it. She didn't want to risk losing him again. And Voight could deal with it. She'd have to deal with the consequences. Erin knew that she wanted to have a chance with him. And Burgess was right; they could lose their life any day with the job they had. Its moments shouldn't be taken for granted.

She slowly moved closer to Jay so her forehead touched his. She leaned forward and brushed her lips against his. She felt Jay tense beneath her before he relaxed and deepened the kiss. He touched his hand to the back of her head, bringing her closer to him. She was caught up in the moment. And was enjoying every damn second.

"About that date..." she started, drawing back and looking into his eyes. Jay chuckled. His laugh was so sexy.

"What about it?"

"Yes," was her simple one word reply.

...

She took her hand in his and allowed him to walk her to her apartment.

"Thanks for tonight. It was nice." She smiled.

"Really nice," he added, wrapping his arms around her waist so there was barely any distance between them.

"Do you want to come in?"

Jay didn't respond. He just kissed her. He still wasn't cleared to enter the field and was advised to continue recovery. This was the best kind of recovery he could think of.

"I don't regret anything," he said, breaking free, just for a moment.

"Who knows where we'd be," she replied.

"Definitely not in your bed," he half joked.

Erin got the hint and reached for her keys. Opening the door slightly ajar so the two of them could slip through, she instantly closed it. It was going to be a long night...one both of them had waited for to finally happen. More life threatening moments were going to occur. But it would be the first time the two of them would face each one together. Not as partners, but as a couple. They promised each other they would put their jobs first. But not tonight.