A/N – Takes place directly at the end of 5x18 in Hailey's house. Characters belong to Dick Wolf.

Jay took a deep breath and set his glass down on the coffee table, "I'm not leaving."

Hailey shook her head and looked away. She swallowed hard and closed her eyes tight against the tears threatening to fall.

Jay gently set a hand on her back and whispered, "Hey, I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere."

Hailey shakily brought her glass of whiskey to her lips and took a sip, "You can go. I'm fine," her voice cracking as she hurriedly wiped her eyes.

Jay shook his head and slipped off the couch. He quietly pushed the coffee table to the side before walking on his knees to be in front of Hailey. "Hailey," he whispered and bent down in an effort to make eye contact.

Hailey whimpered and covered her eyes with her free hand.

Jay gently grabbed the glass from her hand and set it behind him. As a sob broke from Hailey's lips, Jay carefully pulled her off the couch and into his arms.

"I'm here," he whispered in her hair, "You're safe and I'm here."

Hailey curled up against him and cried in his shirt. Jay just held her and let her cry. He absentmindedly rocked her and stroked her hair, occasionally whispering to her telling her she was safe and that the events of the day were over.

Ten minutes later, Hailey tried untangling herself from her partner. He loosened his grip, but kept her close as she sniffled and blinked, taking in her surroundings.

"I'm sorry," she whispered and slid off of Jay's lap onto the floor.

"Don't be," Jay smiled lightly and gently pushed a stray piece of hair off her face from where it was stuck to her tears.

Hailey took a deep breath and pressed the palms of her hands into her eyes, "God damn," she groaned before quickly shaking her head.

Jay tried to keep the smirk from forming on his lips. He glanced behind him and grabbed the two glasses of whiskey. Wordlessly, he held one out to her.

Hailey slightly laughed and grabbed the glass. She tapped it against his and said, "Thank you."

Jay shrugged and finished his glass in one gulp, "You're my partner…mean a lot to me."

Hailey smiled and nodded before finishing her own glass. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and sighed, leaning her head back against the couch cushions.

"Do you like oatmeal cookies?"

Jay couldn't help but laugh, "Excuse me?"

Hailey looked at him and smiled, "Oatmeal cookies. Do you like them? You know, the cookies made with-"

"Oatmeal and raisins," Jay laughed, "Yeah, I guess they're ok."

Hailey pushed herself off the ground, "So if I made them, would you eat them?"

"Uh," Jay glanced at his watch, "It's 9pm."

"Way to be lame, Halstead." Hailey grabbed the bottle of whiskey and walked into the kitchen.

Jay shook his head and stood to follow her, "I am not lame," he protested.

"Oh, yes you are," Hailey laughed and pulled out her recipe book, "I mean really, who doesn't want a cookie at night? Did you even go to college?"

"No," Jay deadpanned before laughing. He sat at her island and watched her flip through the pages before finding the recipe. He smiled as she made herself busy around the kitchen – preheating the oven, cracking the eggs, using the mixer – she seemed calm and at peace.

Hailey huffed as she unhooked the bowl from the mixer and set it in front of Jay. She sat at the barstool next to him and pulled over a cookie tray. She took a swig of the whiskey from the bottle and looked at Jay, "You know how to roll cookies?"

"I wasn't raised in a barn," Jay rolled his eyes and stuck his hand in the dough.

Hailey giggled and gently knocked her shoulder against his before sticking her hand next to his to start rolling the cookies.

They worked quietly for a minute before Jay said quietly, "M&M cookies. Those are the best, but oatmeal are okay too."

"M&M?" Hailey questioned with a smile, "Honestly, I would have pegged you as a more chocolate chip guy."

Jay chuckled, "My mom made them all the time. Actually the last thing my mom and I really did together was make M&M cookies."

Hailey smiled at the sweet confession, "That's a nice memory."

"Yeah," Jay breathed out and set a ball on the tray, "It is." He looked at Hailey and smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. Hailey bit her lip and Jay's eyes widened, "What?" he quickly asked, "Does your head hurt?"

"No, no," Hailey said and, without thinking, set her sticky hand on top of his, "I just…I wish your mom was still here."

"Oh," Jay nodded and settled back down, "Me too." He let out a breath and grabbed the whiskey bottle, "Do you care?"

Hailey shook her head, "Go for it."

Jay nodded and took a quick drink. He cleared his throat and finished rolling the cookie dough in front of him, "She would have liked you."

Hailey smiled, "Yeah? Why's that?"

"You don't put up with my crap."

Hailey laughed and stood, grabbing the filled tray and set it in the oven, "Well, you need to be put in your place sometimes," she turned and leaned against the counter to look at Jay, "And I am totally ok with doing that."

Jay smirked and licked his finger.

"Like right now!" Hailey laughed and threw a towel at him.

"Oh please!" Jay laughed back, "You eat cookie dough. Don't even lie."

Hailey giggled and grabbed the empty bowl from in front of Jay, "But I have more class about it." She scooped up some of the dough scraps on her finger before sticking it in her mouth, sucking it clean.

"That was ladylike," Jay joked, "A true Princess Diana."

Hailey laughed harder. She stepped forward and grabbed the bottle of whiskey. She took a sip before pointing the bottle at Jay, "I got everything out; you need to clean it up."

"I've actually never heard of that rule," Jay laughed, but he still stood and gathered the messy bowl, measuring cups, and spatula. He stood at the sink and washed Hailey's baking supplies as she put the ingredients away.

Both adults had their backs to each other when Hailey heard the water turn off. "Hey Jay?" she whispered.

"Hmm?"

Hailey turned to see Jay drying the bowl. She smiled softly and let out a breath before walking toward him.

Jay didn't hear her steps and started turning around just as Hailey's arms wrapped around him. He smiled and set the towel and bowl down before hugging her to him.

Hailey's eyes started to water as she remembered why Jay was even here in the first place, but the oven beeped and brought her out of her daze. She blinked and started pulling away.

"I got it," Jay said softly and ran his hand down her back. He grabbed the towel and opened the oven to take the cookies out. "They look delicious, Hailey."

Hailey nodded, still fighting the lump in her throat.

Jay was aware of her sudden change in mood and when she still hadn't moved or said anything while he turned off the oven and set the cookie tray on the stovetop, he figured she was coming down, or at least sobering up, from her previous buzz.

"Two options," he started, "The first, we finish off that bit of whiskey – which will sadly only last us a few more sips each – while we wait for the cookies to cool."

Hailey nodded slightly and smiled a little.

Jay smiled in return upon seeing her tiny smile, "Or two," he continued, "You go up to bed and I pack up these cookies for you tomorrow then head out."

Hailey took a deep breath, "What happens after the cookies cool in option one?"

Jay chuckled, "You head to bed and I go home."

Hailey crossed her arms and rocked back on her heels. She looked around and lightly scratched at the bruise forming along her elbow. "Or," she said softly, "Option three…we finish the whiskey," she cracked a smile and uncrossed her arms, "Eat a couple cookies, and you stay the night?"

Jay's eyes widened, "I – uh," he cleared his throat, "Hailey…"

"As friends?" Hailey said softly, "I promise. You're my partner, you said that, and I don't want to mess what we've got going up. I just don't want to be alone tonight, I'd feel better knowing there's at least one other cop in my house."

Jay let out a breath before walking over to the whiskey bottle. He picked it up and stared at it before taking a sip, "At least one other cop?" he questioned with a smirk.

Hailey laughed and took the bottle from him, "I didn't tell you? Voight's already upstairs sleeping in my bed." She winked and tipped the whiskey into her mouth.

Jay laughed, "Awesome. I'm down for an epic sleepover."

Hailey smiled and passed him back the bottle, "In all seriousness, you've had a bit to drink. I'm not losing because you're afraid to have a friendly sleepover with a girl."

"I promise to be a gentleman," Jay chuckled and nearly finished the whiskey, "All right, last pull goes to the blonde."

Hailey rolled her eyes and grabbed the bottle. She quickly finished it and made a face, "Wow."

Jay laughed at her and grabbed a cookie off the tray. He took a bite and smiled at her, "Now that's lame. What'd you say earlier? Have I ever even gone to college? Look who's talking now."

Hailey laughed and shook her head, setting the bottle on the island, "Fair. Pass me one of those will you?" Jay handed her one of the cookies and she sat on a barstool, "Can't believe it even took you that long to offer me one."

"Rude, very rude," Jay chuckled while looking through her cupboards for a bag.

"Hey," Hailey jumped up and grabbed Jay's arm. She shook her head when he looked at her, "It's ok, really, don't worry about it."

"They'll go stale, Hailey, and last time I checked, I worked my ass off for those cookies," Jay stated.

Hailey couldn't help but double over in laughter, her forehead an inch from her partner's chest, "You didn't do a damn thing!"

Jay joined in with her laughter and subconsciously wrapped an arm around her, pulling her against him, "Maybe that's true."

They continued laughing, which turned into a quick bout of hysterics for a brief minute, neither really remembering why they started laughing in the first place. Hailey was the first to slowly come down from her peak of happiness and she remembered what she'd gone through not just that day, but when she was in undercover and just in general. Tears stung her eyes and she stumbled backwards into the island.

The smile faded from Jay's face and he carefully stepped forward gently touching her arm. "Hey," he whispered, "It's just me. I'm here. You're safe. I'm not going anywhere."

Hailey numbly nodded and slipped her small hand in his.

Jay softly squeezed her fingers and carefully pulled her against him, "Let's get you to bed." He hesitated for a quick second before tilting her head up to look her in the eyes, "I promise to help you through this."

Hailey wasn't fully aware of the tears falling down her face, but she was completely present to the realization that Jay was gently wiping them from her eyes with his thumb. She blinked and watched him study her, his tongue just barely visible between his teeth as if he was figuring out a math problem written across her cheeks. She blushed and started walking toward the stairs, her hand still tightly held within his. She stopped at the hall closet once upstairs and pulled an old faded navy comforter from it.

"You can sleep in my room," Hailey said softly as she dragged Jay down the hall.

"Hey," Jay halted in his steps, "You sure? Cause I'm totally okay with sleeping on the couch," he nodded back toward the stairs.

"Like I said before, it's just two partners having a friendly sleepover because one had a real crappy day," Hailey said quietly with a slight smile, "I really don't plan on any funny business happening. Not in the mood. This blanket is mostly for me, I like to lay with it when I've had a bad day."

Jay chuckled, "Fine." He followed her into her bedroom and bit his lip, slipping off his shoes.

Hailey was halfway under the covers, her eyelids getting heavy already as she pulled the old comforter around her, when she caught a glimpse at Jay tugging his belt off, "If you're really uncomfortable with this, you can sleep in the guest room," she whispered.

Jay looked up at Hailey and sighed. She looked tiny in the bed and he had to physically stop himself from wincing at the large bruise creeping its way down her face. His heart broke again today looking at her.

"No," he said softly, "I just want to be here for you, but I don't want to overstep and make you uncomfortable."

"I'm not," Hailey said a bit forcefully, "I just…I just want to know that everything is going to be ok, even if it's just for a few hours while my best friend protects me." The words slipped from her lips before she could stop them and she blushed brighter than before, "Sorry – that…I…sorry."

"Don't be," Jay shook his head, "I want to be here for you." He looked around the room, "You cool if I turn off the lights?"

Hailey nodded and watched Jay walk back to the door. He flicked the switch and the room fell into darkness.

As Jay walked back to the bed, Hailey whispered, "I'm fine if you take your jeans off…unless you're one of those freaks who sleeps in jeans."

It broke the tension and Jay laughed, "I am certainly not one of those freaks." He gladly pulled his jeans off and slipped under the covers, "Come here," he mumbled.

"Excuse me?" Hailey asked as she turned to face him.

Jay put his arm out and motioned his fingers, "Let me hold you. Come on. I don't have cooties."

Hailey laughed softly and scooted over until Jay swiftly tugged her against him.

"I'm quite fond of cuddling," Jay whispered as he wrapped Hailey in the navy comforter she brought to bed, "But you tell anyone and I swear to God, Upton, you're dead meat."

"Copy you," Hailey whispered and pressed her face against Jay's chest. She took in his warmth and peacefully sighed for the first time in she doesn't know how long. His fingers were tracing small gentle patterns against her back when she fell asleep.

Jay woke with a slight headache and had to blink a couple times to register where he was. Hailey's hand was loosely in his and her forehead was pressed against his shoulder.

He smiled and hesitated before pressing his lips to the dark bruise on her head. Partners be damned, this girl was his friend and he cared about her.

After a minute of gathering up courage to stand against the nausea bubbling in his stomach from the whiskey and the couple beers he'd had at Molly's before even arriving at Hailey's, he slipped out of bed and made his way to the kitchen downstairs.

Hailey groaned as her body woke up, fighting the light peeking through the curtains. She fluttered her eyes open, though, when she recognized the smell of pancakes and sausage coming from her cracked open bedroom door. She was just putting her feet to the carpet when Jay walked in the room carrying a tray of breakfast foods.

"Damn," he said when he saw her sitting up, "Thought you could use some breakfast in bed."

Hailey smiled and rubbed the sleep from her eyes, "I haven't left bed yet."

Jay chuckled and sat on the bed, waiting until Hailey was seated against the headboard before setting the tray over her lap, "Orange juice, sausage, pancakes, and some Advil. Eat up."

Hailey laughed and quickly took the two blue pills, "It looks delicious. Thank you."

"No problem," Jay said before stuffing a sausage link in his mouth, "Feeling okay?"

Hailey swallowed the bite of pancake she had been chewing and just about nodded before shrugging, choosing honestly as the best way to start the day.

Jay nodded, "Once you're done eating, I'm gonna ice that bruise," he gestured toward her forehead with his fork, "Looks pretty nasty."

"You don't have to," Hailey said softly, "I can handle this," she motioned to her face then to the rest of her body.

"But can you handle this?" Jay bluntly asked and tapped his own head.

"What? Your bad jokes?" Hailey joked and sipped the orange juice.

Jay laughed, "No." He studied her face before saying quietly as if he were telling her a secret, "Figuring out what you went through the past few days."

Hailey blew out a breath and played with the pancakes on her plate, "I don't know."

Jay nodded and quietly ate next to her. They finished their breakfast in silence, both not completely wanting the morning to end, but knowing it had to eventually.

Hailey cleared her throat and ran a hand through her hair, "Do you want to shower here?"

"Nah," Jay shook his head, "I can head out, let you get all the hot water first," he smiled and stood, grabbing the jeans he had hesitantly left on the floor just hours before.

Hailey watched him put his pants and shoes back on before closing her eyes and tilting her head to the ceiling.

"You good?" Jay asked while tightening his belt.

Hailey opened her eyes and looked at her partner, "Yeah," she said softly, "Just…you really helped me out last night. Thank you."

Jay smiled and walked to the other side of the bed. He carefully hugged her against him and rubbed her arm, "You're my partner, " he looked down at her and this time he didn't hesitate to kiss the top of her head, "And more than that, you're my friend, my really good friend, Hailey, and you deserve to have someone stick around when times get tough." He stepped back and stuffed his hands in his pockets, "I expect you to call me if you have a rough weekend, okay?"

Hailey nodded, "Of course."

Jay pulled his hand out and held his fist in front of Hailey, "Hit it."

That made Hailey laugh and she shook her head as she touched her fist to his, "Thank you."

Jay smirked, "You're welcome. See you Monday, Upton."

"Monday," Hailey repeated and nodded, "See you then, Halstead."

Jay smiled and left her room.

When Hailey walked in her kitchen an hour later, she was surprised to see it cleaner than she'd even had it before Jay came over the night before. She laughed in disbelief and ran her hand through her damp hair. She noticed a note on the island and picked it up.

-Ice your head. If I don't get picture proof by 11am, I'll be on your doorstep at 11:15 with a bag of ice and my brother in tow-

Hailey smiled and glanced at the clock on the microwave. She had 15 minutes to meet Jay's request. She walked to the freezer and opened it to see a bag filled his crushed ice sitting on the top shelf, a note taped to it.

-That's my girl. Text me!-

Hailey couldn't help but laugh again and grabbed the bag. She made her way to the couch and sat down, placing the ice right on the bruise. She closed her eyes and reveled in the relief it brought her for a minute before picking up her phone and sending a quick picture to Jay.

-Happy now?-

She barely blinked when her phone buzzed with a response from Jay.

-100%-

Hailey walked up the stairs to Intelligence at 8am Monday morning. She passed Adam and Kevin, saying nothing as she walked straight to Jay at his desk.

She dropped the bag of oatmeal cookies in front of Jay's computer screen right in his line of sight.

He laughed and looked up.

"Thought you might like some," Hailey smiled.

"Definitely," Jay nodded with his own smile.

"What the hell do I have to do to get you to bring me cookies?" Adam asked Kevin.

Kevin shrugged and watched Jay open the bag, "You're asking me? What do we have to do to get some cookies from Upton?"

Jay winked at Hailey upon hearing the comment and bit into a cookie.

She bit her lip to hide her smile and sat down, "Thank you," she mouthed across their desks.

A/N – I hope you liked it! I've been thinking of this since I watched "Ghosts," so I'm hoping I did it justice. Let me know what you think. I'm excited to jump in this world headfirst and meet you all.