I cannot believe this.

Hailey sighed for the millionth time at the man-child next to her, who was still fixated on the television, which held a rerun of the latest PGA tournament, as the one that was supposed to happen this weekend in Springfield was cancelled due to the viral outbreak.

Jay still had his hands clasped together, his elbows on his knees, which were bouncing up and down slightly as he watched Tiger make his next move. Hailey knew better than to try and talk to him when he was this entranced by a golf game, so she just sat on her couch, content with every so often glancing over at her partner.

Quarantine buddy is more like it, she smirked to herself, still unsure of how they got in this predicament. Oh no, you know how, her mind taunted. She smiled, remembering that just a few hours ago, their typical Friday night was going just fine. Nothing out of the ordinary.

They had finished their day at the district, forgoing Molly's for time at Hailey's apartment, as she needed to vent after a particularly rough case. She had royally fucked up earlier when she blew up at Voight in front of the whole unit.

Sarge, come on!

No Hailey, we've done what we can do. Either you're with me, or you're going home.

And since she couldn't let it go, she was let go. For the day, at least. Course she's pretty sure Hank yelled after her, "You're taking the weekend off, Upton."

And Jay, being her partner and all-around stand-up guy that he is, ran after her. She could sense him before she saw him by her car in the parking lot.

She didn't even have to speak to him for it to be understood. She simply held up her hand and gave him a saddened expression. He nodded, and she knew he got it. Not now, but later. Later they could talk it out.

We talk, we feel better, then we're able to go work the next day. It works.

She remembered her advice she'd told him last year fondly as she downed her second beer while waiting for his arrival last night. When he did finally get to her apartment, his own 6-pack in hand, she knew they would be up for a while. But, there was no one else she'd rather be up with than him. Nor no one else she'd be willing enough to be that vulnerable with. 2AM or not, Jay was just easy to talk to, be with, no matter what.

She didn't know it yet, but the only time it wasn't going to be easy would be staring her in the face in about 5-10 minutes.

Jay hadn't planned on staying at Hailey's…not even overnight, but considering it was nearing 2AM when he had arrived, and they'd talked well until 6 in the morning, he had in fact, done just that.

He sighed as he watched Tiger get a rare birdy. He knew Hailey was being gracious for allowing him to obsess over his golf game. He had tickets to the tournament this weekend, and had planned to go with Will, but alas, plans changed. Damn virus.

He shook his head, before sneaking a peek at his partner. She was still sitting next to him, glancing at her phone for a moment before catching his eye. He turned his attention back to the television, hating that he'd been caught. Course, it wasn't the first time he'd been eyeing her.

He'd been doing it a lot lately. He just wasn't quite ready to admit the reason why. But, as his eyes unabashedly scanned her figure, he knew he was screwed if he didn't admit it sooner or later. She was still stunning to him, even in sweats and an old University of Chicago t-shirt.

She was fastening her hair back into a ponytail when she caught him again. "What?" She asked.

He quickly glanced down, hoping his face didn't look as hot as it felt. "Nothing," he replied.

"Come on, Jay."

He knew that tone. That was the "I'm not letting this go until you talk" tone. Walked right into that one, he thought to himself.

"I just feel like I ruined your whole weekend."

"Well sure watching golf wasn't on my agenda…" she tried to joke, but then she stopped midsentence when his expression didn't change.

"Hey," she placed her hand on his shoulder. "You didn't ruin anything. The damn outbreak did. Not your fault it decided to make its way to Chicago now. We're just gonna have to make the best of this weekend…or however long we're required to be contained."

He sighed, both at her words and the loss of contact when she removed her hand from his shoulder.

"I guess you're right."

"Oh, I know I'm right," she quipped, earning a grin from him. She smiled back, before deciding to get up and grab some coffee she had started a little bit earlier.

"You want any coffee?" She asked him, prepared to grab two mugs from her kitchen cabinet.

"Sure, thanks."

She nodded, before filling both cups. She grabbed the half & half from her fridge for herself, knowing he took his coffee black. Once that was done, she scampered back over towards the sofa where he sat.

Too bad her dumb ass missed the lip in the floor, which of course sent the coffee sailing out of her hands…and onto the floor. And apparently, because God really wanted to torture her, all over Jay's clothes.

"Shit," she cursed, running back to grab paper towels. "I'm so sorry, Jay." She handed him one, and he took it, as she tried to ignore the tiny jolt of electricity she felt when his fingertips brushed hers.

"It's just coffee, Hailey," he said, dabbing at the dark liquid which had now made a stain on his light grey Henley.

"Well, here, at least let me treat the stain before it sets." She insisted, the words slipping out of her mouth before she realized what that would entail.

"I can just–" he stopped himself when he realized he couldn't leave her house to go back to his own apartment to use the laundry room. Shit.

"You can just hand me your shirt," Hailey mocked slightly, arching a brow in his direction.

Jay knew that look. And he heard it in her voice. That teasing lilt she always did that toted the line between friendly and flirtatious.

He usually played it off, but for whatever reason, he decided to play into it instead. So, right there in the middle of his partner's living room, off his shirt went. He peeled it off intentionally slow from the back of the neckline, in true guy fashion.

He could've sworn he saw Hailey's smirk change to one of shock, as her lips parted the tiniest bit. But, as soon as the fabric was finally off his body, she had regained her composure.

Her lips were pursed now as she held out her hand, to which he delicately handed her his shirt.

If her eyes did a sweep of his currently unclothed torso, it was the fastest he'd ever known, as he didn't catch it. He only caught her eye as she turned to leave, the only words passing her lips were: "Nice farmer's tan. You get that from your golf outing trying to perfect that ridiculous swing of yours?"

He rolled his eyes as he saw the end of her smirk before she ventured down the hall to her laundry room. He couldn't help but shake his head though. She had him there. He was golfing a few days ago. She always seemed to know him better than he knew himself though. That he really should've remembered.

Realizing he no longer had a shirt to wear though, the next thing he thought he actually vocalized.

"Hey Hailey, do you have a shirt I can borrow?"

She'd never ran so fast down her short hallway in her life. She only let out a shaky breath when she knew she was alone in her laundry room.

"Dammit," she whispered to herself. Her cheeks were pink, they had to be, as they were warm to her touch.

She sucked in another much-need gulp of air, really wanting to smack herself silly. But first, she had to deal with said stain she said she'd take care of.

She doused it in some stain remover before tossing it in the wash. She only turned her head at the sound of Jay's voice echoing down the hall.

"Hailey, do you have a shirt I can borrow?"

She bit her lip to keep from laughing. Oh, she was so getting him back for that. She grabbed a couple more items from her dryer before heading back out to him.

"You want floral or polka dots, Jay?" She teased, holding up either option of blouse in his direction.

"Very funny, Hails," he replied, crossing his arms.

She desperately tried to look anywhere else besides his arms, which were now showing every muscle off, only serving to make his pecs look even better than before if that was humanly possible. Hailey wasn't sure, nor did she care less in that moment.

"I am, thank you." She said cheekily, before ducking back into her room to grab one of her brother's old shirts from the top of her closet.

Well, she tried, but her short stature wasn't helping matters. "Dammit," she breathed as she hopped up on her tip-toes for the second time. She had just touched the sleeve of the t-shirt, but she could get an actual grip on it.

Her tunnel vision prevented her from sensing his presence behind her, so she almost jumped out of her skin when she saw a strong arm reach around her, and up onto the shelf to grab the shirt.

Despite knowing Jay was right behind her, she still managed to trip on her own two feet as she came back down on her heels. He caught her with his unoccupied arm, his grip on her forearm firm, but not harsh.

She had forgotten how to breathe like a normal human for a second, as she opened her mouth slightly, but no air came through into her lungs. Because apparently a shirtless Jay Halstead did that to her. She was glad she hadn't fully turned around to face him yet. She shook her head a minuscule amount, as if she was trying to knock her brain around to make it function again. Speak, do something, anything Hailey.

"Thanks," she whispered, finally glancing up at him.

"Yeah," he breathed, his voice barely resonating to her either.

That's how she knew it wasn't just in her head…nor was it just one-sided, what she was feeling. Because while he often looked at her like that, never had his gaze held this type of intensity. It was like he could see right through her.

And while she'd usually break free and run from these kinds of things, she was feeling bolder being this close to him. She took a split-second glance down to see he still hadn't let go of her forearm yet.

Her lips curled into a soft smile, and she placed her hands on his bare chest, attempting to create a slight bit of space between them, thinking he'd get the hint. It wasn't until she felt his heartbeat increase underneath her fingertips that she got a new idea.

She leaned forward and up towards him, like she was going to make a move, but her lips brushed the shell of his ear instead. "You can let go now, Jay." She whispered, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth as she felt his quick release of her arm.

She forced her best innocent, "who me?" expression onto her face when she came back down on her feet to face him.

Satisfied by his speechlessness, she turned on her heels to walk out of her room when she heard him finally speak up again.

"You mind if I grab a shower?"

Well, she had to hand it to him, that she wasn't expecting.

Jay knew precisely what he was doing when he asked if he could grab a shower as he held on to the clean t-shirt Hailey had given him. He knew that she knew when he saw her tell. She always bit her bottom lip when she was thinking through something…which meant she planned her little…sentence with him.

He couldn't help but chuckle to himself when she still hadn't dignified his question with an answer.

"Ha–" he bit back a full laugh when she hurriedly snapped: "Yeah, sure, fine."

"Thank you," he called out to her, before he padded down the hall to the bathroom. Besides, he needed it. Anything would help right now in getting his mind off the very visceral reaction he had just now to the blonde who sassed him mere seconds ago.

Little did he know said blonde wasn't fairing much better in the cool-down department. In fact, unbeknownst to him, Hailey was very much heating up after their minor interaction back in her room. Which was precisely where she ran back to, shutting the door on the way.

"Take a fucking breath," she commanded herself. If only her body would wind down as quickly as her ragged breathing. She let out a frustrated groan as she laid back on her bed. It certainly didn't help matters when she heard the shower turn on.

Damn him. She knew he knew what he was doing. She just wasn't sure how he knew she knew that he knew….you know? She slapped her hand over her very warm forehead, wishing her mind would just shut up for two minutes.

She found herself biting her lip again, but she definitely wasn't thinking innocent thoughts this time. She shut her eyes, initially planning to blink them rapidly, like the physical action would erase the images of Jay that were dancing around in her head.

But no, instead she was seeing snapshot after snapshot of him, his eyes, his lips, the freckles that decorated every part of him. She dropped her shoulders, sinking lower into her mattress. She let out a harsh breath as she felt her toes curl. She couldn't help but see the water running down every…sculpted…rugged part of him.

She kept her eyes closed, figuring she had a few minutes to herself, so why not just enjoy this? It's not like she had the real thing there all the time…who was she to deny this lovely temptation?

Too bad she was so absorbed in her dream she didn't realize her reality had been done with the shower for a good couple minutes.

Jay stopped dead in his tracks as he was toweling off. His first instinct was to run, with said towel wrapped around his waist, into Hailey's room, as he thought she was crying. It wasn't until he reached her door that he realized she wasn't crying, but crying out.

He froze for the second time in 2 minutes, only this time, his fight or flight response didn't kick in. He was literally stuck in place, his feet working against him, unable to move. He was clenching his jaw, barely breathing evenly.

One too loud sound and this supposedly "perfect" scenario he found himself in would come crashing down. He didn't dare even shift his weight, as he wasn't sure if her hardwood floors would creak.

He found his eyes darting around the hallway, which was unhelpfully barren. So much for a distraction. He found a brief reprieve when he remembered his clothes in the bathroom, but then his mind internally screamed: don't move, idiot! So, he stayed put. In his towel. Only in his towel.

Even swallowing to try and get his mouth working again seemed like an impossible task. Not to mention the echo it created in his ears sounded like it bounced off the very walls he was currently leaning against.

His head snapped in the general direction of her door when he heard the sounds shift. Gone were the impassioned sighs; in their place, a few softer gasps. Just when he thought he was going to lose his cool, a curse slipped from her lips.

Fuck.

It wasn't too low, nor too high. Just simplistic, and yet sexy enough to cause an evident issue. Evident enough for Jay to utter the same curse word to himself too.

He had closed his eyes for a moment, trying to chill out and calm down, but neither were successful when he could've sworn he heard his name drop next. Wishful thinking, right? He wasn't sure if he was merely imagining it, or if the luckiest three letters in the alphabet had been strung together to form his name from the one person he'd want to make say it over and over again.

His favorable thought was abruptly halted when she actually called out his name…in the very plain, regular way. Which meant she was up. And alert. As were all of Jay's senses, which thankfully, by spare seconds, allowed him to race back into the bathroom to grab his clothes before Hailey had any idea of what had went on. At least he hoped.

"Hey Jay, you coming back out here or what?" Hailey asked as she walked down the hall, knocking softly on the bathroom door.

"Yep, just gimme one second." He called to her from the other side.

"Okayyyy," she drawled, sauntering over to her original position on the sofa. She turned her head when she heard the door open a few seconds later.

Out came Jay, his hair still wet from the shower. Her older brother's worn mechanics t-shirt actually fit him nicely, but she quickly averted her eyes from his body. She didn't need to get worked up again.

He slowly sat down next to her on the couch, slightly closer than normal, as she could smell the shampoo off him. Her eyes caught his for a split-second before turning away again, both of them fidgeting with their hands instead.

Hailey had just opened her mouth to say something to break the ice when the television decided to do it for them.

"This just in: breaking news from the statehouse. Illinois has proceeded to evaluate the threat level of the viral outbreak here within the city limits. Chicago has now been marked "safe;" but not "all clear." All residents are advised to keep inside if possible, but by Monday, within 24 hours, business should be able to be conducted as usual."

"So…" Hailey began, eyes flitting towards Jay once more. "I guess that means you can go home…"

"But I'm already inside," Jay argued, half-jokingly.

"Jay," Hailey said his name in that way again. The way he'd come to know so well. Coupled with her arched brows and lips painted into a thin line, he knew it best not to argue with her. So, he tried a different approach.

"And I don't wanna leave."

"What?" She asked genuinely, not sure she heard him correctly.

"I really, really, don't wanna go, Hailey…" he said, inching closer to her with every word.

She felt her breath catch in her throat for what seemed to be the thousandth time today. But, she forced herself to speak. "Why?"

"Because then I wouldn't be able to do this."

He stated it so easily, Hailey wasn't even sure what he was talking about until his lips melded with her own, which made her forget everything including her own name for a moment.

One of his arms wrapped around her waist, settling her down onto her couch, while his other hand softly caressed her cheek. She found her hands getting busy on his clothes, desperately wanting each layer off him faster than the last.

"You should've just stayed in the towel," she quipped. And Jay almost missed it, being as he was so focused on peppering her skin with kisses.

But nevertheless, he paused, eyeing her suspiciously. Hailey smirked underneath him. "My door closes, but it always pulls itself off the ground slightly, so whenever anyone's in the hallway, I can see a tiny bit of their shoes….feet….or towel."

"When did you know?" He asked.

"Why else did you think I cursed, genius?"

"I'm gonna be a gentleman and not answer that."

She quirked her brow. "Normally I'd find that wise, but yeah no. Tonight? Tonight, wildest dreams are becoming a reality."

Jay'd never been happier to be left breathless in his life. He only nodded before giving Hailey the best night she'd had in a long time. Both their names were echoed that night…numerous times. By the time morning came, there was no air left to breathe that wasn't each other's. Not like they minded one bit.

"Remind me to get stuck at your place more often, Hailey," Jay said, stroking her arm lazily.

"Whatever you say, Jay." She said, kissing him quickly before laying her head back down on his chest. And for once, she meant it.

A/N: Yeah, I'm not really sure you could call this a quarantine one-shot; but hey, I tried okay guys! Anyhow, just a fun little drabble on what would happen if Upstead were forced to spend even more alone time outside of work together, I guess. Hope ya liked it!