Considering both Jay and Hailey were both born and raised in Chicago, they were no strangers to the cold winters. However, it did not make them any less bearable.

Today happened to be a chilly Friday, where temperatures plummeted down to the negative forties with the windchill. The power is out in many parts of the city and a number of Chicagoans are stranded without heat and water. It's ugly out there, but the districts have all pooled together to help whoever they could. With the help of the fire department, they made it through the worst.

Or so Hailey thinks.

She groans as she checks her phone. It is a little past nine at night and the unit had a hell of a day hitting the streets. All Hailey wants to do is crack open a bottle of wine, take a nice hot bath and go to bed early. Instead, she receives a text from her landlord informing her that the power is out in their neighbourhood and there is currently no heat.

Hailey's head hits the wood of her desk just thinking about the icebox that is currently her apartment.

Jay peaks his eyes over his computer monitor upon hearing her distressed sounds. "You good, Hailey?" He asks with a hint of amusement.

The rest of the team has already left for the night, after Jay and Hailey lost a bet earlier that day. Both partners didn't believe the power would go out because of the cold and the rest of their team bet them a week's worth of paperwork. Needless to say, Jay and Hailey lost, and they are prepared for quite a few late nights in the near future.

"Apparently my power is out and so is my heat," she replies, paperwork completely forgotten. "Do I even have enough blankets to survive the night?" She adds dramatically. "Oh my God, I'm going to have to put on every article of clothing I own."

On that note, Jay checks his phone to make sure his apartment was still intact. "Hey, don't worry about it," he tells her comfortingly; her eyes flit up to meet his. "You can come home with me tonight."

"Oh no, no," Hailey shakes her head, "that's alright."

Jay furrows his brows. "You literally just implied you'll freeze if you go back home."

"I was being dramatic," she waves him off, "I'll be fine. Thanks for the offer though, I appreciate it."

Jay checks his phone again; it's nine-thirty and no new messages. "Alright, I'm done with paperwork for the night," he gently pushes the endless piles further into his desk. "Come on, let's go."

Jay is up and grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair and Hailey is watching him with an exasperated expression. "Jay, I'm going home. I'll be fine."

"I'm sure you will be," he says nonchalantly "But I'm offering you a warm bed and free whiskey. What more could you want?"

"What I want is to not be a bother and go home," she stands her ground against his bewildered look. "Plus, I don't have any of my stuff with me and if I have to go get stuff, I may as well stay there," she explains, like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

Jay raises a suspicious eyebrow. "I know you always have an overnight bag in your locker."

Hailey pauses in her mission to get into her winter coat and hopes Jay doesn't notice it; of course, he does. "Jay, seriously, I don't want to be a bother."

"The only thing that's bothering me right now is your refusal to let me help you when it literally comes at no cost to me," he replies, his features entirely serious. Hailey is being extra resistant, and he isn't sure why. "I promise, I'll be the perfect gentleman, if that's what you're worried about."

Hailey shakes her head. "No, that's not what…" she trails off, her voice quiet. Jay dips his head to catch her eyes; she is being even more mysterious than usual. "Okay, I'll take you up on your offer. But," she says sharply as he starts to grin victoriously, "this is for one night only, okay? I'm not trying to put anyone out."

Jay rolls his eyes but is still satisfied she changed her mind. "Right, because that's what you're doing," he adds sarcastically, and she punches his shoulder in retaliation. He can tell she hates to be a bother, but he wishes he could convey how she is the least bothersome part of his life.

They stop by the locker rooms quick so Hailey can pick up her bag before they agree to meet back at his place. He's already mapping out things to do or say to make her feel more comfortable and has a pretty decent list by the time he reaches home.

His apartment is nice and toasty when they arrive and relatively clean. He was never a messy guy and he doesn't have that much in his apartment to begin with. He takes both their jackets and hangs them in the hall closet, watching out of the corner of his eyes how Hailey looks small and uncomfortable in his living room. He frowns; she should feel comfortable in every aspect of his life.

"Hey, relax, okay?" He tells her on his walk back to the kitchen. His hands land on her shoulder and her blue eyes bore into his nervously. "You're not in my way and you're always welcome here, you know that."

He is used to confident and sassy Hailey and he wants her back.

"You want something to drink?" He asks. "Whiskey?"

His hand is already on the bottle but Hailey surprises him by entering his kitchen and taking a hold of his coffee maker. "Can I actually make some coffee?" Jay smiles at her first sign of comfort and nods with enthusiasm. "That walk from the car to the front door just about killed me."

"You want to take a shower while the coffee brews?" He asks after a few minutes of scrolling on his phone.

Hailey's eyes light up. "Yes, I would love that!"

He motions for her to follow him and leads her into his room; the bathroom attached to his room is the only one with a shower.

"This is Jay Halstead's bedroom?" Hailey teases in a higher-pitched tone. She's smirking wildly and all he can do is roll his eyes. "Everything is black, and you only have the basics. Why am I not surprised?"

Now it's his turn to smirk. "I'm a very simple man, Upton."

She shakes her head in response.

"Here's the shower," he explains, popping into turn the lights on. "Fresh towel on the rack and extras in the closet over there," he points. "I'll leave you to it. Do you need anything else?"

Hailey sets her bag down in the bathroom and quickly rummages through it. "No, I think I'm okay," she says and looks up at him. "Thank you, Jay," she smiles softly.

Jay suddenly finds it hard to swallow and is rushing to exit the room. "Yeah, no problem," he responds quickly. "I'll be in the kitchen if you need me."

She nods and he's gone.

His bathroom is very simple but clean. He has his shaving essentials on the corner of his counter, and she's surprised to see he has a face scrub as well as a moisturizer. But then again, he literally has perfect skin, so she isn't surprised. She expects to find a 3 in 1 shampoo, conditioner and body wash but is pleasantly surprised when she sees multiple bottles.

She takes her time showering but is still wary of the time. She debates whether or not to use his body wash but ultimately decides smelling like him wouldn't be so bad. She does have a pair of pyjamas in her overnight bag, but they consist of an oversized Dunder-Mifflin tee and casual sleeping shorts. She's not sure if Jay had ever seen her bare legs (what with all the black jeans and all) but he was definitely about to. Hailey brushes her hair and scrunches it with her fingers before gathering her dirty clothes and folding them into her bag.

When she pads back into the kitchen in her bare feet, Jay has his back to her as he prepares their coffees. After years, he knows almost all her preferences, the first being her coffee order. She hums in delight after her first sip.

Jay struggles to not drop the mug when he turns around and sees her oversized shirt and shorts. He was expecting anything, but definitely not that. She looks comfortable and tiny and his heart swells with affection. He has to forcefully remind himself that they are partners and nothing else. It's getting harder to differentiate.

They stand, sipping their coffee in comfortable silence. It's perfect and Hailey wonders why she put up such a fight in the first place, but then the lights go off and everything is black.

Jay swears and she hears his coffee mug scraping against the counter. There is an immediate chill as the heater stops functioning and Hailey suddenly regrets being barefoot in shorts. Jay goes in search of the fuse box to maybe have some luck but to no avail. Instead, he lights up a few candles he has stashed in his linen closet and grabs all the flashlights he owns. The candles do a good job or illuminating the kitchen, so he can still admire Hailey and her adorableness in his kitchen.

"Shit, I'm sorry," he chuckles. "Looks like it's a lose-lose situation tonight."

Hailey shuffles in her feet and Jay prepares himself. "Should I go? I mean, it's the same thing as my place."

"Nonsense," Jay shakes his head. "I have enough blankets here for the both of us."

Jay finds his way back to the linen closet and grabs all the blankets he owns. Will absolutely loves fleece blankets and takes any opportunity to gift them, usually to jay, who rolls his eyes and asks why he can't just gift him a bottle of alcohol like a normal sibling. Jay will never admit that the blankets actually came in handy tonight.

"Come on, I'll set you up in my room."

Hailey follows Jay down the corridor and back to his room, where he is laying out multiple blankets. He leaves a few in his hands and stands near the door. "Let me know if you need anything," he says with a smile, "I'll just be on the couch."

Hailey sputters and Jay raises an eyebrow. "You are not sleeping on the couch! The whole point of me staying here is that I wouldn't be a bother."

"You're not a bother," he says for the umpteenth time with an eyeroll.

"Then get your ass in this bed because you're not sleeping on the couch," she replies, and her sass is finally back; he finds himself smirking.

Jay relents, setting down the rest of the blankets. "You're sure?"

"Yes," she sasses with an eyeroll; she has to make up for lost time. "This bed is big enough for both of us and you promised you'd be a gentleman."

He holds up his hands in surrender. "Absolutely."

Jay excuses himself to the bathroom to change into a pair of sweats. He carries a flashlight with him to provide light. He originally intends to take a shower but can only imagine how disastrous showering in the dark would be. He normally sleeps in much less clothing but it's cold and he wants Hailey to be comfortable, so he slips on a t-shirt as well. When he exits the bathroom and shines his light towards the bed, he spots Hailey already curled into the blankets. He notices her blonde hair first and then her trembling body.

He automatically adds the remainder of the blankets on the bed and watches as Hailey sits up momentarily. "Cold?" He asks with a small smile.

"Yes," she says quietly, but then thinks better of it. "What are you waiting for, Halstead? Are you going to offer me a hoodie or do I have to go searching for one?"

He is amazed with how comfortable she's become, and he finds himself smirking as he rummages through his drawers. He pulls out an old sweater from his academy days and throws it at her. "Anything else, your Highness?" His sarcasm is on point today.

Hailey pulls on the sweater, her blonde hair getting ruffled in the process. "Honestly?" She raises an eyebrow. "I just want you to get in bed and keep me warm."

His eyes widen at her forwardness, but he catches the slight nervousness in the way she bites her lip. She doesn't have to ask him twice though, as he slips into his side of the bed.

Before he has the chance to do anything, Hailey turns to him in the dark. "Is this okay?" She asks quietly as she cuddles closer.

His hands find her waist to pull her as close as possible and Hailey can feel his sweatpants as her bare legs tangle with his. "More than okay. It really is cold," he whispers, chuckling.

"Yeah," she replies, and he can feel her breath on his collarbone. "I guess this is better than staying in my apartment all alone.

"Are you kidding me?" Jay laughs. "Hell yeah it is. I'm an amazing cuddler."

He can feel Hailey's hands against his chest. "Wasn't aware we had the cuddling type of relationship."

Jay pauses. "To be honest, I don't know where I stand with you. Like ever. You scare the hell out of me."

Hailey pulls back slightly; she wants to see his face but it's so dark. "Scared of me? I'm like half your size; how can you be scared?"

"You can be very intimidating when you want to be, Hailey," he replies. "But it's scary. When you don't know where the other person stands."

She nods. "I guess so, yeah."

"I know we're partners, and we're supposed to trust each other unconditionally and maybe I'm reading into it too much —"

"You're not, Jay," she interrupts. "I think I always knew I was going to fall for you eventually. I mean, how could I not?" She continued, oblivious to the fact Jay literally stopped breathing. "I've trusted you since the day I met you. You have the biggest heart and honestly, I strive to be even half the cop you are every day."

Jay curses again. "Shit, Hailey," they're still tangled together. "It kills me that you don't appreciate everything you are because you are the best cop I know. And I'll admit it, I didn't want to work with another female cop because we all remember how that worked out last time," he chuckles to cover the awkwardness he's feeling. "But you snuck up on me. What with all your sass and your stubbornness."

Hailey is smiling so wide and it's a shame Jay can't see it. She pushes into him, forcing him to roll over on his back and she follows him on his chest. Her hands reach up to his face, tracing the smile on his lips.

"I know you lose my sass," she starts. "And who are you calling stubborn, you hardass?"

Jay's hands are on her waist, holding her steady. "Fair enough," he chuckles.

"Jay, I love this right now," Hailey says quietly, "I love being here with you and I genuinely see the potential here. But at the same time, we're partners and our jobs demand so much of us."

The giddiness he was feeling starts deflating.

"But I don't want to put the brakes on us," this catches his attention. "I like you too much for that. I just want to take it slow. See where it takes us. Are you alright with that?"

The happiness he was feeling earlier returns at full force and he finds himself grabbing her hips and rolling them over so he's hovering over her. She's giggling and honestly, if that is the last sound he ever hears, he'll die happily. "I'm more than alright with that," he answers her question. He can dimly see her face and the shine in her gaze. "When taking things slow, how long should I wait before I kiss you?"

Hailey smirks and he can see a dim outline. "I think you're already a few months overdue."

He wastes no more time in pressing his lips to hers. He tastes of coffee and so does she, and it's absolutely perfect. There is no urgency, just bliss. This has been a long time coming and now that it's finally here, all they can do is enjoy it.

"I could get used to that," Hailey mumbles against his lips. His heart literally skips a beat. "I really want to get used to that."

Hailey dives in for more and he lets her. She can do whatever she wants with him, he'll let her.

"Still cold?" He asks after they pull away and he pulls her into their initial position.

Hailey chuckles. "That's not exactly the word I would use."

Jay smirks but he keeps his cool; they're taking it slow.

"Goodnight, Hailey."

He presses a kiss to her temple.

"Goodnight, Halstead. Dream a little dream of me."

Hailey cuddles closer, her lips hovering over his neck.

"I could do that, but I've got the real deal right here," he squeezes her hip. "And I don't plan on letting go anytime soon."

THIS WAS SO CUTE!

spent my first day in quarantine yesterday (i'm a supervisor at a grocery store so it's all hands on deck) and i couldn't write anything! and then suddenly at two in the morning, i banged out this little number and I LOVE IT

hope you all are staying safe & healthy! remember social distance (unfortunately i cannot bc i'm needed at work) but stay home unless necessary!

i'll continue writing bc upstead is so freaking adorable so i should be back with something soon! i'll also appreciate any prompts you all want to send my way (i've already taken into consideration ones i've received on other stories so stay tuned!)

anyway, enjoy & review and stay safe!