#winks hermann

[staud]

MOTA GIFS PER EPISODE | Part 4 Red, Egan here. How'd the game go yesterday? Was Buck in the lineup? Did he have a good game?

[mastersoftheair]

[sweaterkittensahoy]

Jack: Why are Harding's underwear up the flagpole?

Ken: Sir, they're regulation underwear. How do you know they're the Colonel's?

Jack: They're monogramed.

Winks: I don't think do, Sir.

Jack: On the inside waistband.

Ken: How could you know that, Sir?

Jack: ...just tell me who bet you I'd give myself away, and I won't run you both up the flagpole after them.

Ken and Winks: Cleven.

Jack: How much to hide a bird in his footlocker?

Ken: Chickens are ten cents a bird. Ducks are a quarter. For a dollar, we'll piss off a goose before we lock it in there.

Jack: I'll take the goose. Wait. Will it bite?

Winks: Oh, yeah.

Jack: Good.

[barelysleepyy]

For @get-shortcaked .

Cringy Hermann doodles + Blithe's mini Hermann + that one small Newton + sneaky little Schrody the cat (as requested by Blithe)

[juniperss]

Someone please gif some John ‘Winks’ Hermann from Masters of the Air for me👉🏻👈🏻 pretty please someone? Anyone? Please

[sweetmuffynsblog]

Touché

Pairing: Simon Basset x OC

Warning: English is not my first language

Summary:

Everyone knows who the Duke of Hasting is, a famous rake in his own rights, notoriously known as the heartbreaker. But when everyone knows the gossips of the young Duke of Hasting, then they can not help but know who the Duchess of Iverness is!

Cassandra Alicia Brennus is a Duchess, in her own rights. It's bound to happen when you are the eldest of the daughters of the noble in Scotland, thus the title can be inherited via female rather than must to search for another male member in the family tree, that's why she is a Duchess after her father's passing.

Cia as her known as, is famously known for her outings. She never cares for any rumours about her, she is the Duchess and has every rights to sit in the damned house of Lords like those bruttish of men called themselves noble Lords. And it doesn't help when her most closest and oldest friend is a notorious rake like the famous, Simon Basset, The Duke of Hastings.

Now, Simon Basset by no means an horrible man, he is in fact, a very good man, Lady Danbury says so. Both of them had known each other since they were a child, barely eleven when Lady Danbury had bought him into her estate, it was Cia that helped him overcome his suttering by talked to him everyday, then both of them are so close that they enrolled Eton together then to Oxford and met other friend such as Viscount Anthony Bridgerton. Albeit being a woman, Cia's father, the Late Duke Of Iverness demanded that she would be enrolled in Eton, the King gave his consent at that, even if it's against the society and custom.

Dressed in a dark purple riding coats with gold embroidment a black cravats, a black trousser and a boot, she puts her weapon in the safety belt, Cia gets out from her room and to her Ladies in Waiting - they are daughters of the minor noble in Iverness that come to accompany her in order to see London - that stand outside and look at her choice of dress in horror,

"Your Grace, what kind of clothes you are wearing?!" she gasps at her making Cia smirks,

"rest assured, Emma, i will go and come back later." She goes outside and smile at a pageboy that brings her horse, "already eat?" the Pageboy nods, she nods to him, "call Joseph and Victor, we're leaving."

She waits for her two personal guards to coming, when she hears the voice of someone she loathes the most, her Governess, Mrs. Hermann,

"what in the world you are wearing, Your Grace?!" the old lady shrieks making Cia's smirks widen, she rotates her body and winks at her,

"well, I'm going to meet my friends from Eton. It's a gentlemen party." she briefly explains making the Governess shaking in anger,

"you can not go outside with that clothes, Your Grace! It's against the society!"

Cia rolls her eyes, "society be damned, i will do whatever i want." she will not doubt that her Lady Mother and Lady Grandmother will know about her behaviour today by the end of this day, and she will bound to listens to their scolding when she comes back to Iverness, but their scolding can be wait, she will not back to Iverness in the time comes, not when Queen Charlotte demands her presence as one of the Ladies in Waiting in her court, her positions as a part of the House of Lords already giving her the power she needs, and when Queen Charlotte wants her to be the Lady in Waiting for her and was a playmate to the late Princess Amelia, she is easily by far the most powerful noble woman in the whole Great Britain.

She controls her reins easily, and they arrive in the most famous gentleman club in London. She gets up from her horse and lets the stabble boy tends to it, she enters and welcomed by a lot of noise, usually the noises of noblemen who gamble or throwinh punches in the middle, and they say it's a fun thing, Cia begs to differ, when does this savage thing being a fun again?!

She spots the exact same people she went to Eton with, then comes closer to them, they drink and chatter and laugh, she wrinkles her nose in distate,

"and here i thought after Eton, all of you can doing something great." she says and their noise dies down, she smirks to herself at that, when they see her, they get up from their seat and bow,

"Duchess of Iverness!"

She laughs, "no need to formalities, all of us are friends." she says, she sits in the middle of her dearest friends, Anthony Bridgerton and Simon Basset. "Bridgerton, nice to see you again, how are you?" she politely asks, it's a custom to never refer to a noble with their given name unless you're so close and in private, thus they will call each others with their titles, or when they are already close, they will refer each other with their states - for those who have it - and surname.

"splendid, Your Grace, you by far the most beautiful now."

She laughs, "aye, sweet as ever, Bridgerton."

"only for you, Your Grace, only for you."

Cia will be damned if she ever falls for those words so easily, she knows them, she studies with them, she practically lives with them for years in Eton, and after known them so long, only fools fall for their sweet words. She looks at Simon who watches her like a hawk,

"aye, Hastings, decided to come back to England, are we?" she asks, taking sip of the water in her bottle of water,

"His Grace has been asking for you the whole time, Your Grace," the man, who Cia knows as the heir Grosvenor pipes in, and raises his cup to her, Cia winks at him,

"really?" she then gets closer to Simon, for better looking, of course, "tell me, Hastings, i hear that you missed me a lot?"

She can see his face hardens, but she doesn't understand, why. She knows Hastings was a weird man, he always has this hardened face everytime they are in a public outtings with their other friends from Eton, Cia thoughts that it will be dismissed after he went to travel the world and come back again, but apparently not.

"let's go outside." she whispers, she then looks at the other gentlemen, "it's nice to meet all of you, gentlemen, but me and the Duke of Hastings must go now, thank you for your time." she bids them farewell, then looks at Viscount Bridgerton, "see you around, Bridgerton."

She practically drags Simon outside, when they can conversed privately, then she looks at him,

"what's wrong with you?" she asks him, rather annoyed by his antics,

"what's wrong with me?" he retorts making her wants to smack him in the head,

"don't play fool around me, Hastings."

Hastings's eyes darkened, he looks at her, then huffs, "i can not do this. We cannot have this conversation."

"what?!"

"i tell you, Iverness, we will not have this conversation. Not here and not now."

"Hastings, you act so strangely... What happened?"

"nothing happened, Iverness. If you cannot see things clearly then don't."

And then he stormed, gets into his horse and go with a fuming anger without looking back, making the Duchess frustrated at his anger,

"what's wrong with him?!" she asks herself, then shakes her head, before she and her guards go back to their house in the Mayfair.

***

It's a debut season in London, apart from her duties as the member of the House of Lords, she also has a duty in the palace as a part of the Queen's Ladies in Waiting. Her jobs by far the most easily, she doesn't need to do anything than offers a companionship to Her Majesty, Her Majesty saw her growing up and taking her under her gracious wing, she is her favorite.

"is everything ready?" The Queen asks, and she nods, The Queen pats the place, and she sits there, she huffs at the feathers in her hair and how unconfortable she is in the gowns even when her gown is easily the second most stunning gowns in the whole room, only the Queen can upstate her.

"i'm bored." she tells the Queen honestly, The Queen looks at her with amused looks,

"you will not if you decided to participate in this, Cassandra." she says making Cia winced, Cia hates being called Cassandra, it's very long name, she opted to be called as Cia or Her Grace or Iverness, not Cassandra, especially that's practically her mother's name.

"no, i'm good Your Majesty. I'm young and beautiful and powerful. I deserve only the great things." she answers making the Queen smiles, it's really a rare thing to make Her Majesty smiles these days and Cia can do it without need to work hard.

Then, one by one, Young Ladies are presented to the Queen and her court, Cia sits there and looking bored, and occasionally winced when a young lady fainted, or at how horrible Featherington's curtsy are, and then her attention got to the Bridgerton girl, in a glance she knows that she is Anthony's sister, then she gives an elegant curtsy to them, everyone is waiting and gasping when the Queen stands up, she also stands up and comes to the Queen's side, both of them looking at the Bridgerton girl,

"pretty little thing, isn't it, Cassandra?"

Cia nods, "yes, she is, Your Majesty."

After that, to everyone's surprises minus Cia who already bored, The Queen declared Daphne Bridgerton as "The Diamond of the first Water."

***

Cia never likes to attend any parties in the society, she is rather sleep than go to those. But it's different when your Godmother is the one one who hosts it and The Queen practically dragging you to attends, that's why she is here, waiting for the man to announce their titles,

"Her Majesty The Queen! The Prince Friendrich of Prussia! And The Duchess Of Iverness!"

The door opens, everyone curtsy and bow, she walks in the Queen's left side while Prince Friedrich one of her dearest friend and the Queen's nephew from Prussia in his rights, they are following by the Queen's court Ladies.

Lady Danburry comes and gives the Queen curtsy, she smiles and both engaged in a conversation,

"i will go and fetch the drinks." Friedrich announces, bows to them,

"wait, i'm going!" she says and gives the Queen curtsy and a nod to Lady Danburry, then she walks with Prince Friendrich, "what?" she asks Friedrich who stiffles his laugh,

"no, nothing."

Both of them arrive in a small stall of lemonades and small cakes, "i'm hungry." she tells him, he fetches both of them lemonades and then Cia begins to take the small cakes and puts them in her mouth, eat it with gusto, "ugh, Lady Danburry's cakes always the best."

After Friedrich lets her eat until her heart content, they hear the music start, Friedrich asks for her hand in dancing, they go to the center and begin their waltz.

"not going to be creep but someone has been watching us like a hawk since you and me go to the refresment."

She wrinkles her eyebrows but her steps don't falter, "decribe him, will you?"

"tall, mysterious, dark, handsome, typicall the young lady's criteria."

"Simon Basset, you mean?"

"maybe him."

Their dance comes to end and Friedrich bows while she curtsies to him. After that both of them come to their place near the Queen.

"you two look dashing, dears." the Queen says, Cia smiles in thanks, her attention caught to the only male that stand in Lady Danburry's side,

"Hastings."

"Iverness." he greets back, the tension between them is tick, you can cut it with a knife, Cia wants him to talk first and maybe apologise, his behavior causing her pain, Simon always doing this, and Cia is the one who should mends their relationship again, she is always be the one who forgets and forgive him, it all be so easily. She finds it exhausting, not because of their friendship, no, she treasured it a lot, but because of his immature behavior, one supposed to become very mature when they inherited their parent's title, especially if their father is a Duke, Cia understands his feelings about inherits the title, she is one too!

She ignores him, doesn't want to uttered a single word to him other than the greeting, Lady Danburry glancing at two of them with worry, they're usually two peas in a pod, always having excitement conversation when they meet or be at each other's presence. Lady Danburry only notices that although they don't talk, Simon always look at Cia and her companion that dance with a glare.

"if you love her, you should act quickly." says Lady Danburry with a knowing look, Simon wants to protest but she held out her hand, "woman like her, Simon, especially powerful always going to catch anyone's attention. If you don't act quickly, she will be gone."

Realisation hits Simon like a bitch, he knows how much the society's eyes look at Cassandra Brennus, The Duchess of Iverness. She comes from a long line powerful family, even if she doesn't have the title of 'Duchess (regnant) of Iverness' many Dukes, Marquess, Earls, Viscounts and Lords want her to become their wife, she is as smart as she is beautiful, she is talented, she is exquisite. He has been in love for a very long time, maybe when she played polo in Eton or maybe when she debated gentlemen in poet and won? He loves her in a light that only he can understand, he loves her for her, for Cia, for her long time best friend, he doesn't love her for Cassandra Brennus, Duchess of Iverness, he loves her for Cia, only Cia. He got the determination, with that strong determination, he enters the dancing room for the first time in forever, he can hear the murmur sounds, and he is in time for the dance to stop.

Cia's dance comes to finish, she gives Anthony Bridgerton a quick curtsy, while he bows to her, she is shocked when she sees Simon stands there in all his glory,

"Simon?" she asks him, he breathes when he hears her call his name,

"dance with me, Your Grace." he bows to her while she gives him a curtsy, this time longer than what she gave Viscount Bridgerton, their foot in sync, it's like when they were still a pair of children whose being yelled at by Governess for their bad behavior, he is her original dance partner as she is his, she can remembers the dance even when she closes her eyes, and so do him.

After it feels so quickly, the dance is stop. Simon offers her his hand and she puts her hand in the crooks of it, they walk outside to get a fresh air. Silence surrounds them, it is a comfortable one,

"i want to say that i'm sorry for my rude behavior, Cia." he blurts, making her smile, they're in a private gardens, which provides them with a privacy they need,

"apologies accepted." she says "just please talking to me again. I feel so lonely without you. I miss you so much, Simon."

Simon hugs her, she sighs and let her boy relax to him, "i miss you too."

After that, they talk to each other, Simon tells her the story of his travelling, while she tells him hers, how it's not bad being a Duchess and attended her duties in Iverness.

"Marry me." he blurts out, making her halts,

"what?"

"marry me, Cia."

"why?"

"i feel like everything is so much brighter when i'm with you. When you are not there, it's like someone turned out the lights. I desired to be with you. I miss you. I feel lonely when i can't see you. I am obsessed with you, fascinated by you, infatuated with you. I hunger for your taste, your smell, the feel of your body touching mine. I want you beyond all reason. It's like you're in my blood, in the air i breathe. I can't get you out of my head, and i don't think i'll ever get tired of seeing you right here next to me."

Simon can see Cia's tears, her red cheeks and her shaking body,

"i have love you since we were children. Long before all of this. If i am lucky, i want you to be my wife."

Cia smiles at him, she wipes her tears,

" i am dreaming, am i?"

"no, you don't." he whispers and hold her cheeks,

"then i have a few conditions," she says, looking at him with a determined eyes,

"i will make sure to follow them." he promises, she smiles again,

"first, i want us to have more than one child. I know how you feel about family and children and all, but i want to have children, one to inherit your title as the Duke of Hastings the other will inherits my title." Simon nods, at this point, even if she wants him to bring the star, he will, "then i want you to be known as the Duke of Hastings and Iverness, and me as The Duchess of Iverness and Hastings."

Simon breaks into smile, "of course. It can be arranged."

"i want you to love me, hug me, kiss me, every single day in our marriage. I want you to whisper sweet nothings to me everyday, and to not get tired of me, i want you to be honest with me, can you do it?"

"of course."

" i want you to make a call in the palace. Ask my hand infront of the Queen and The Prince Regent."

"i will do that."

"and last but not least, please kiss me, now."

And he does, he kisses her fiercely, and the news about their scandal is in Lady Whistledown's newspaper the very next morning.

The end❤

[sevcasejay1chicago]

@gengirlstuff put in a request a few weeks ago for a teen sister!Casey fic. Thank you for your patience and I hope you enjoy!!!!

Not Elsa Afterall- TeenSister!Casey

Summary: During a snow day, you end up at the firehouse with your brother and extended family. After being led into a trap, you become hypothermic and your family has to try and save you.

Warnings: some language, mentions of past abuse (in a way), PTSD, claustrophobia, hypothermia

~~~~~~~~~~~

Some would say your childhood was unconventional at best, but you couldn’t have asked for a better one. Since you can remember, Matt Casey, your older brother, has taken care of you and so has the whole of firehouse 51. Since Matt and Kelly are such good friends, Kelly was named your godfather and Stella Kidd your godmother. Matt would entrust you with almost anyone in the house, but even after everything, Kelly and Stella are the only people he would want you to go to if anything happened to him.

Since it’s a snow day, you had to go to the firehouse with Matt. Not that you ever minded, even at the age of 15 you still get spoiled by all of your aunts and uncles. Cap and Tony are your prank buddies, which normally ends in a war against Hermann, Mouch, and Cruz. Violet, Stella, and Sylvie always make sure to spend some sort of girl time with you when you are at the firehouse, even though they are always doing girl trips and girl nights with you off shift. When Truck is gone, it’s an unspoken rule that either Kelly, Hermann, or Boden is in charge of you. If everyone has to leave the house at the same time, which didn’t happen often, you had to ride along, but you never got out at a site unless absolutely necessary. Most of the time, when there is nothing going on, you can be found lounging in one of the officers’ quarters. More likely than not, you are with Kelly playing “firecop”. You have thought about being a detective when you grow up, given the great relationship you now have with all of Intelligence and Trudy Platt, but when you grow up in a firehouse, you almost always follow in your family’s footsteps.

So far, nothing interesting has happened. A few black ice accidents and ambo calls, but nothing that required more than one or two units to leave the house at a time. Within the first 6 hours, you have pulled a couple pranks and watched Frozen just to sing the adult parody of Let It Go for Cap and Tony. You had just turned in for a nap in Kelly’s quarters when the tones went off.

“Truck 81, Squad 3, Engine 51, Ambo 61, Battalion 25. Warehouse fire at 6391 Daphne Drive.”

Kelly chuckled as you groaned, waiting for you to leave his quarters before running behind you. “Don’t worry kid. You can catch a few winks in the rig. I’ll have Cruz leave the truck running for you.” Kelly said, patting you on the shoulder and throwing you the extra bunker coat they leave out for you just incase.

“Thanks Sev.” You muttered, catching the coat in your arms before jumping into the rig behind Tony. You bundled up next to the window as Cruz sped behind Stella with the rest of the firehouse following behind. You tuned out the conversations happening around you and slipped in your headphones, turning the rest of your attention to the scenery.

Arriving at the scene, you took out your headphones as you listened to the rest of the guys chat. You were in the middle of nowhere. No smoke could be seen and no cars were in sight. It didn’t look like anyone has been out this way in a while.

“Well guys, get ready for anything. We will go in and do a sweep and then leave if it’s a false alarm.” Kelly said to the rest of the truck. “Princess, you stay put and stay warm. Keep an eye out.” Kelly said as the truck parked, turning around again to open his door and hop out.

Matt came and opened your door. “This shouldn’t take long. Stay here, okay?” Matt said, climbing up and placing his truck jacket on your lap.

You nodded and leaned your head back as you shoved your headphones back in. Music was your only choice seeing as you had no bars out this far. You were pretty surprised that the unit could be called out this far from the house, but you just went where you were told.

After about 30 minutes, you started getting an uneasy feeling. Everyone was inside and they should have been back by now. Using the limited training that squad has taught you, you jumped into the drivers seat to turn the rig off before going to the side compartment that held the spare gear. As you made your way to the compartment, you slipped and fell into a puddle that the engine melted, soaking your entire back and the back of your legs. You quickly shrugged it off and stood to grab your gear, more concerned about your family than how wet your clothes were or the faint ache in your head from it hitting the wet ground. If this was a gas leak or they were knocked out somehow, you needed to keep yourself safe and get inside to your family. Masking up outside the door, you shrugged on the spare bunker jacket and air tank before placing the mask over your head and walking in.

After walking through the first set of doors, you reached the second and opened the door to find a huge empty room. Looking around, you saw another door at the far edge of the room and cautiously walked towards it. As soon as you opened it, Kelly and Matt stumbled through.

“Oh my God. What happened?” You asked, grabbing onto Matt by the shoulders.

“The doors. It’s a trap. Go back and try that door!” Matt panted, exhausted from the exertion of trying to help Kelly pry open the door. The rest of the crew wandered back into the big room and followed you.

You pushed the door only to find it locked. “Matt.” You yelled, throwing your body into the door. “It won’t open!” You screamed, becoming frantic. You were all stuck in this big room. There was nothing but the people of firehouse 51 and you. The walls and floor were pure concrete and there was only a ventilation shaft on the top of the 20 foot ceiling. It had to lead to the outside because it was extremely cold.

“Hey hey hey. Breathe.” Kelly said, coming and grabbing you by the shoulders. “In and out.”

You have always had a fear of enclosed spaces. Recently, thanks to Dr. Charles, you found out that your mom locked you in a closest when she killed your dad. Matt found you later on during the day, thankful that it seemed that you were completely unaware of anything but that fact that you were tired, hungry, dirty, and scared. Though this room was much bigger, you were trapped once again.

You shook as Kelly handed you off to Matt. You cling to your brother as the rest of the group tried to figure a way out. “M-Matt. I’m s-so sorry.” You whimpered, burying your face into your brother’s chest.

Matt sighed and rubbed your back, swaying back and forth with you in his arms. “Hey now. None of that. You didn’t know.” Matt hummed, kissing the top of your head. “It’ll be fine. Once we are gone for long enough, someone will come looking. Until then, we are all here.” Matt whispered, opening his coat and pulling you in.

You were freezing. The bunker coat was decent at keeping the freezing air out, but unlike the rest of the house, you didn’t have on bunker pants or thick layers of clothing underneath the coat you were wearing. All you had on under the bunker coat was a pair of leggings and a long sleeved CFD shirt.

Kelly noticed you quacking in Matt’s arms and immediately took off his beanie, pulling it onto your head. “That’ll hold in some heat.” He said, standing closer to you and Matt to help provide some body heat.

“T-thanks.” You whispered, leaning back toward Kelly and pulling Matt along with you. Your panic jump started your shivering, and it didn’t seem to stop.

As you leaned back into Kelly, your wet hair made contact with his neck. “Jesus! Why are you wet?” Kelly asked, stepping back to grab your hair and wring out the water before tucking it into his beanie.

“I slipped. Fell I-into a p-puddle trying to s-s-save you g-guys.” You stuttered out, pulling yourself even closer to Matt.

“Wait. Let me get this straight.” Matt said, pulling you to arms length. “Under that coat you are soaking wet. In the middle of winter. And we are stuck in a freezing room.” Matt broke it down, looking between you and Kelly as he spoke.

You nodded. “Yep.” You replied, popping the p.

“Fuck.” Kelly muttered from behind you.

“Alright everyone. Listen up.” Boden yelled, catching everyone’s attention after he had a little time to think. “This was obviously a trap. We have no contact with the outside world, but dispatch led us here. Theoretically, someone should be coming to look for us pretty soon. It’s been about 45 minutes since we landed on scene and Kylie is still in the bullpen. So, everyone huddle up and stay warm until CPD arrives or whoever they send out for us.” Boden announced.

Everyone quickly huddled up, finding themselves in little groups that eventually morphed into everyone in the middle of the room. Matt, Kelly, Boden, Stella, Cruz, Violet, and Sylvie found themselves in the middle of the huddle with you straddling your brother’s lap in an attempt to get as close as possible. Matt and Cruz were sat back to back for support as you placed yourself practically in Matt’s coat for his body heat. Kelly and Stella shared a coat so that Kelly’s Jacket could be given to the paramedics since they only had on their winter coats. After another 30 minutes went by, they realized they had a bigger problem. You were quickly becoming hypothermic.

“M-matty. ‘M s-sleepy.” You slurred, burying your cold nose into your brother’s neck.

Matt and Kelly were instantly on high alert. You haven’t called Matt that in years. Not since you were at least 9. “Hey. I need you to stay awake. Okay? Stay with me.” Matt cooed, trying not to sound too desperate so that he wouldn’t scare you, but enough to keep you awake.

“Jus a quick n-nap. M’ head h-hurts.” You muttered, fumbling to get closer to your brother.

“No no no. Not yet. Just wait until we can get you out of here.” Matt said, pushing you slightly away as Kelly leaned over and checked your pulse.

“Matt, her pulse is slow.” Kelly whispered.

“Okay. Okay. Let me think.” Matt muttered, looking around.

Kelly was quicker. “Hang on. I have an idea. It’ll be a little awkward, but anything for her, right?” Kelly asked, looking Matt in the eyes.

Matt nodded. “Anything.”

Kelly moved quickly after that. He wrapped Stella up in her own bunker coat after taking yours. Kelly scooted as close to you as he could, hugging you from behind. Matt caught on quickly and hugged you close to his chest. Matt’s head was on one side of your head with Kelly on the other. The two bunker coats were pulled around your bodies. Everyone knew what was going on and was quick to huddle in, trying their best to create more body heat as you began slowly slipping in and out of consciousness.

After 2 hours in the 20 degree room, the Intelligence unit broke through the door. They had received some threatening messages the last few days against the CFD, but when they heard from Kylie that 51 went AWOL, they knew this had to be the work of whoever was making those threats. They moved as quickly as the could, bursting in just as you began to slip completely unconscious.

“5021 George. Missing are located. I repeat missing are located. One critical. Rolling the Ambo on sight. Close off all streets from here to Med.” Jay yells into his radio as he sees Kelly helping Matt get up with you limp in his arms.

Sylvie and Violet are already running for the ambo with Matt, Kelly, Stella, and Jay not far behind. You hang limp in your brother’s arms as he and Kelly call out to you, begging you to stay with them. Doors are held open and a path is quickly made to the ambo. Kelly helps Sylvie treat you as Violet speeds behind Jay, who is leading the escort for you to med.

“I’m barely getting a pulse. She isn’t protecting her airway. I have to intubate.” Sylvie yells, causing Violet to tell the same thing into her radio as Kelly grabs more trauma blankets and wraps you up in them. Once your intubated, Sylvie takes out her phone. “Mags. It’s Sylvie. I have Y/N Casey. She’s severely hypothermic. Not protecting her airway, weak pulse, temp of 94 and not rising with trauma blankets. You guys need to prep for her.” Sylvie instructed, letting Kelly take over bagging you so that she could check your airways. “She was soaking wet and possibly hit her head. We will need to cut off her clothes on arrival. Warm saline and blankets should do it once these clothes are off.” Sylvie replies to whatever Maggie was telling her. “ETA is 3 minutes” then she hangs up.

“Sylvie.” Matt pleas, looking at his girlfriend.

“We’ve got her Matt. Just a bit longer.” Sylvie placates, shooting him a small smile as she takes the bag back from Kelly.

Upon arrival to Med, Maggie and Conner throw the ambulance doors open and immediately help Sylvie and Kelly unload you. They quickly do as Brett previously instructed, running a few extra tests on you once the IV is placed, and then they leave Matt and Kelly alone with you.

“She’s gonna be alright man.” Kelly reassures, holding your hand on the opposite side of the bed that Matt is on. Kelly doesn’t look up, not able to bare the look of fear and guilt in Matt’s eyes.

“She should’ve stayed at the house. She’s old enough to be at the firehouse alone, plus Kylie was there and they could’ve just hung out.” Matt sighed, running a hand down his face. “She wouldn’t be in this situation if it wasn’t for me.” Matt sniffed, keeping hold of your hand.

Suddenly, you squeezed both your hands as your heart rate spiked and your eyes flew open. If it hadn’t have been for Kelly and Matt keeping your hands in theirs, you would have yanked your tube out.

“Sh Sh Sh. Sweetheart. It’s alright. Hang on.” Matt muttered, using a hand to pull your face to look toward him.

Kelly let go of your hand once Matt had your attention and met Maggie at the door. “She’s awake!” He exclaimed, catching the attention of Jay, Will, and Conner who were all talking behind the desk about what happened.

Conner ran in as Maggie silenced the machines. “She’s over breathing the tubes. Let me get that out. Hand on sweetie.” Conner soothed, pushing past Kelly and rushing to your side.

Maggie held a basin under your chin once Matt moved to the head of your bed. They all knew of your sensitive gag reflex, so this really wouldn’t be fun. “Deep breath.” Maggie instructed. Conner was quick to pull the tubing out and stepped back as you dry heaved over the basin Maggie held for you.

Will came up to Conner’s empty spot and rubbed your back as Maggie handed the basin to Matt so that he could get closer. “Breathe sweetheart. Just take some slow deep breaths.” Will coached, taking the cup of water from Kelly when you finally calmed down and held the straw for you to sip. “There you go. That’s it.” Will soothed, nodding at Matt to put the basin away.

Once you were calm, Jay, Will, Conner, and Maggie all filed out of the room. Jay promised to give the house an update as he walked away, kissing you on the cheek. Kelly and Matt settled on either side of you again, Matt moving into the bed with you.

“God. You scared the hell out of me.” Matt muttered, pulling you into his side.

“What even happened?” You asked, looking between the eyes of your scared godfather and brother.

“Well, we were trapped. You got stuck with us, but before coming in, you slipped and hit your head in a puddle. You were soaking wet and went hypothermic on us.” Kelly explained, rubbing his face and sitting back as he watched your reaction.

Your eyes went wide. “Holy shit.”

“Language.” Matt scolded lightly, using your favorite marvel character’s word against you.

You chuckled, snuggling into Matt. “Guess I’m not Elsa after all. The cold does bother me.” You joked, causing Matt and Kelly to laugh.

“Too soon.” Matt said, though he was still chuckling.

“Definitely too soon.” Kelly agreed. “I’m gonna go get Boden and Stella. They were raising hell trying to get in here earlier.” He said, getting up and kissing the top of your head. “I’m glad your okay. Love you princess.”

“Love you too Uncle Kelly.” You beamed, snuggling closer to your brother as you both watched him leave to gather the rest of your family.

[6thofapril1917]

hi tal! i thought i'd pop in and request something from your reblog! can i ask for "cotton" with maggie and ken?

ohhhh this one's got potential. thanks blu!!!

(this one's pre-relationship teehee)

It's a rare sunny day at Thorpe-Abbotts - Ken had been warned that English weather was generally pretty miserable, but he wasn't prepared for just how grey and gloomy the weather would actually be most days. How the English could stand it, he didn't know.

The sun beat down on the top of his head, making him sweat. He pulled off his beanie, letting the cool breeze blow through his curls, when he glimpsed something that made his throat run dry.

Evidently, he hadn't been the only one sweating under the unusually warm late-summer sun. Across the hardstand, Maggie Zielinski had unbuttoned the top half of her coveralls and tied it around her waist. The thin white cotton of her undershirt clung to her broad shoulders, back muscles rippling as she pointed out a problem in the carburetor to First Sergeant Mason. Her dirty-blonde braid was slung over her shoulder, wisps of hair framing her flushed face.

"Christ, Kenny."

Ken tore his eyes away from Maggie's figure to see Winks staring at him incredulously, a barely-concealed smirk on the other mechanic's face.

"Zielinski, huh?"

"Fuck off, Hermann."

[gh0stlymoth]

[ID: 2 images. the first is a two-panel comic of Newt and Hermann from Pacific Rim. Both panels show them sitting at a table, Hermann in the midst of bandaging Newt's arm. Newt already has a few bandages around his other arm, as well as a bandage on his face. Hermann is glancing up at him, frowning, and says: "You really should be more careful, Newton." to which Newton replies, a bit taken aback: "Dude, what, you expect me not to poke the skin mite?". Hermann looks up at him and, a bit bewildered, replies: "Yes!?". Newt, who is now similing slightly says: "Sounds like a you problem, dude". The second panel is made up of 4 speech bubbles with little chibi heads to indicate the speaker. the first one with an angry Hermann head: "Newton, I would appreciate it if you took your own safety a bit more serious." Newt, winking: "Careful there, Herms, I might start to think you care about me." Hermann, now even more angry: "I do, you ridiculous man." Newt, blushing: "oh...". End ID]

A bit of lighthearted lads for @gamerdano for the Newmann Secret Exchange :)) Happy Holidays!!

[censorship]

Explore me bookshelf

(Not actually) Tagged by @matrose :-]

An estimate of how many physical books I own: About 100 maybe? The number is increasing with my age...

Favorite author: Hermann Hesse 4evaaaaa, Jonas Jonasson and Oscar Wilde are also pretty okay

A popular book I've never read and never intend to read: It's a book series as far as I'm aware but the Harry Potter stuff lol I know many of my peers read the books as children but I never touched it in my life (I think, maybe I did though, my memory sucks but at least it launched that out of my brain I guess in case I did touch the books before)

A popular book I thought was just meh: To be fair I haven't read it fully nor have I watched the famous film adaptation but PRIDE AND PREJUDICE BY JANE AUSTEN I'M SORRYYYYY I CANNOT STAND HER WRITING I DON'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHINGGGGGG

Longest book I own: The Complete Sherlock Holmes collection by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle or Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy

Longest series I own all the books to: Ummm I think The Lord of the Rings trilogy by JRR Tolkien <3

Prettiest book I own: From the cover art I presume? Probably the Puffin Clothbound Classics edition of Dracula by Bram Stoker

A book or series I wish more people knew about: The Flavia de Luce series by Alan Bradley! I thought it was a children's/teens' book series but I just googled and nobody mentions that so I guess it's just a normal mystery thing??? I read it as a kid so maybe that's why I was projecting teehee (also the protagonist is 11 at the beginning - or forever, I don't remember)

Book I'm reading now: Maurice by EM Forster and When We Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro (latter one's for class actually...)

Book that's been on my TBR list for a while but I still haven't got around to it: Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin </3 I will read it after Maurice and WWWO for suuuuure (wink)

Do you have any books in a language other than English: Yeah maybe a third of my library is in German... :-)

Paperback, hardcover, or ebook? Paperback because you can bend it and stuff. Also e-books are cool I guess if you want to read a long story or multiple ones at once on the go but otherwise I am not a big fan of them </3

Tagging these cool people: @ihateleagueoflegends @arhada @baldursgate2 @gomadayo @tanukidrill and anybody else who wants to do this :3 feel free to tag me in it, I'd love to read your post

[caffeinatedwoman]

We're more than halfway through Masters of the Air and since 1st one, John Brady, Everett Blakely and James Douglass have become some of my favourite characters in the show, Its hard not to like Bucky Egan, his persona is large than life and I'm enjoying Gale Cleven a lot (I'm not a big fan of Austin Butler and was sure I wouldn't like him lol). Rosie Rosenthal, Jack Kidd, Benny Demarco, Ken Lemmons, Hambone Hamilton, Frank Murphy, Charles Cruikshank, Pappy Lewis, Neil Harding, Bill Veal, Winks Hermann, Glenn Graham, Glenn Dye, Albert Clark, the list of is just getting big with every new episode. Funny enough Harry Crosby is the one that didn't click, his actor is doing an very good job but I'm not getting into him.

[mastersoftheair]

samuel jordan + cast members + historical pics of john "winks" hermann, the guy he's portraying (from samuel jordan's instagram)

[sweaterkittensahoy]

What if I go full romcom on this Chick/Minnie (OFC) story and bring DB into it? Like, early on in knowing each other, Chick's suddenly just carrying gosling in his pocket like it's nothing, and Minnie does not know what to do with this information. I mean, yes, it's adorable. But also, what the fuck.

Okay, I actually love this enough I'm going to throw something together right this second:

Minnie sits at her desk and reviews reports, wishing one of the girls was sick so she could have an excuse to be on the floor more than once an hour. It's the day after another mission, and there's so many boys in the beds. She'd agreed to a Head Nurse position originally because her years of actual nursing gave her the option with the Red Cross. It'd seemed an easy decision back when she agreed, a way to test out if she wanted a job so high up the chain.

As she signs her name at the bottom of a patient report, she knows with certainty she never wants this job again. Too much paper, not enough patients.

There's a knock on her open office door, and she glances up. It's Colonel Harding, which means it's ten-thirty. He comes every day they've got boys in the beds to get a personal update. The first time she'd seen him, Minnie wouldn't have guessed him the type. But she's since learned he's got a big heart for these boys, same as she does. It's part of what makes them friends.

"Please, come in," she says, standing and smoothing her skirt. "Coffee?"

"If you've got extra," Harding says. "And could I get a bowl of water?"

Minnie pauses, coffee pot hefted halfway to pouring position. "A bowl of water?"

"I'm babysitting," Harding says and reaches into his leather jacket.

Minnie stares in mild shock as he pulls out his cupped hand and shows her a tiny gosling she already knows too well. "Oh, don't tell me the ground crew suckered you into letting them keep it."

"I thought you loved babies," Harding replies, bringing his other hand up so the gosling is fully cupped against his chest.

"Babies, yes," Minnie says, walking around her desk and sticking her head out the door. Charlotte is in the hallway sorting bandages. "Nurse Thorton," Minnie says, "Could you get me a large bowl of water? Lukewarm."

"Of course, Ma'am," Charlotte says, the question in her eyes very clear.

"Thank you," Minnie says rather than answer. It's been a long morning for all of them. Charlotte will appreciate the surprise of the little gosling. She turns back into her office, and Harding is sitting in the chair in front of her desk, still holding the gosling. She goes back to pouring them both coffee. Black for Harding, one sugar for herself, then sets the cups down on her desk before sitting herself.

"You were saying you love babies, but not this little man," Harding says, rubbing a finger across the gosling's head.

"I grew up with geese. They're monsters," Minnie answers. "They lived by our pond and would chase us all around. They bite. A lot."

"Here's the water," Charlotte says as she walks into the office. She stops short at the sight of the gosling and smiles. "Oh, is that the one Winks found?" She asks, then stiffens slightly. "Corporal Hermann, I mean."

Minnie lifts some folders to clear a space for the bowl. "It seems to be," she says. "You haven't been filching supplies to help with the bedding have you?"

Charlotte shakes her head. "No, Ma'am. I've only given them scraps from my own rag bag."

Minnie doesn't ask if the other nurses have been filching supplies. She knows the answer. She just signed the inventory sheets, and they're slightly low. She'll ignore it this once. "That's nice of you, Nurse Thorton. You may go."

Charlotte nods and gives Harding a quick smile, then leaves the office, closing the door behind her.

Minnie watches Harding place the gosling in the water with slow, easy movements. "Has he swum yet?" she can't help but ask.

"A few times, the boys tell me," Harding replies as he lifts his hands away. The gosling kicks its legs and makes a small circle, then nips at the water. "But only in bowls so far. I promised he'd get his exercise on my watch."

Minnie shakes her head, watching the gosling nip at the water and make a wider circle. "You're really going to let them keep it?"

"Winks looked for a nest, but he couldn't find one."

"If he'd gotten within ten feet, the angry mother would have gotten him first," Minnie says.

"And I figure, if he ends up being a problem, we'll take care of it right around Christmas dinner time."

"Colonel!" Minnie admonishes, though she has to cover her mouth to hide her smile.

"Well, Nurse Green, are you for or against the goose?" Harding asks, eyes bright with amusement. "First, you're disappointed I've got him, and now you're acting like it'd be bad to eat him."

Minnie gives in and laughs a little. She watches the way Harding's eyes crinkle at the edges as he picks up his coffee. The gosling makes a small noise and does another circle in the bowl.

"Perhaps your boys can teach him more manners than the geese at the farm ever had," Minnie says. "Something-something, the sins of the father and all that."

Harding leans back in his chair and sips his coffee. "We'll see. I heard them trying to pick a name today, and none of them were repeatable."

Minnie snorts and reaches for the reports Harding is here to discuss. "I'm sure I've heard all the words they're wanting to use," she says. "I've probably said a few myself."

"Haven't we all?" Harding agrees, and he leans forward again, elbows on his knees, a sign he's ready to get down to business. So, Minnie does.

[onyxsboxes]

The secret list of very serious (and sober) 100th's rules

The new chapter is available 🥳🥳🥳🥳, hope you like it

The secret list of very serious (and sober) 100th's rules (2529 words) by Amethyste_Blanche

Chapters: 2/2

Fandom: Masters of the Air (TV 2024)

Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Gale "Buck" Cleven/John Clarence "Bucky" Egan

Characters: Gale "Buck" Cleven, John Clarence "Bucky" Egan, Harry Crosby, Curtis Biddick, Marvin "Red" Bowman, Everett Ernest Blakely, John Brady (Masters of the Air), Bernard "Benny" DeMarco, Ground crew (Masters of the Air), Howard "Hambone" Hamilton, Joseph "Bubbles" Payne, David Friedkin, Ken Lemmons, Robert "Rosie" Rosenthal, Winifred "Pappy" Lewis, Meatball (Masters of the Air), Jack Kidd, Flesher (Masters of the Air), James Douglass (Masters of the Air), Ground Crew Members (Masters of the Air), Dye (Masters of the Air), Nash (Masters of the Air), 100th Crew Members (Masters of the Air), Speas (Masters of the Air), Ronald C. Bailey (Masters of the Air), John "Winks" Hermann (Masters of the Air), Dickie (Masters of the Air), Masters of the air

Additional Tags: Crack, Background Relationships, Fluff and Humor, Humor, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence

Summary: To avoid any incidents, please follow the unofficial rules established at the 100th. If you're reading this, Colonel Harding, please forget it exists.  Or a guide to help new recruits settle into life at the 100th.

[torreshalstead]

It Seemed Like a Good Idea - Chapter 5

Summary - Hailey’s US visa was due to expire, which normally wouldn’t be an issue as the CPD would get it renewed but due to a backlog of paperwork, this wasn’t possible. This meant Hailey was faced with the real possibility of having to leave the country, her job and everything she held dear. That was until Jay offered up a solution which would allow her to stay in Chicago, in Intelligence, with him - they could get married. Getting married was a good idea, right?

Chapters - 5/18

Chapter Title - The Photographic Proof

Notes - thanks for the support on this story so far, this is my favourite chapter so far, it’s fluffy and cute so I hope you enjoy! AO3 Link

Settling into living together was a surprisingly easy transition. Hailey and Jay spent the majority of their time together anyway, so the only difference was at the end of the night instead of returning to their separate apartments, they shared a cab or car ride home and went to sleep in rooms next door to each other.

Hailey adapted smoothly to Jay’s obsessive tidiness and his inability to let mess or clutter sit for longer than 5 minutes. And Jay learnt to love Hailey’s need to have music on anytime she was doing anything, whether it was showering, cooking, cleaning, Hailey’s spotify would be blaring tunes throughout the apartment.

So far they hadn’t had any awkward moments, neither had walked in on each other in the shower or entered a bedroom when the other wasn’t fully dressed. They both respected each other's privacy but had quickly developed an easy roommate relationship. Hailey was thankful that at least this part of the plan had gone smoothly, she wasn’t sure how well the rest of it was going to go at any rate.

What they hadn’t anticipated was the comments from their teammates and other friends. The news that the two had finally taken the plunge as Stella had called it, had spread through their friends like wildfire. When they had ventured into Molly’s a couple of nights after the team had found out, they were met with knowing looks and awkward winks.

‘I knew it all along,’ Hermann had said confidentially as he offered them two whiskey’s on the house.

‘You’ve been dancing around each other for ages, glad to see you’ve finally taken the plunge,’ Stella had chuckled at them.

Severide had clinked his bottle to Jay’s with a smirk and Hailey had found herself cornered by Sylvie and Violet wanting to know how it had happened. Luckily Kim had arrived at just the right moment and given Hailey the exit route she had desperately wanted.

‘I promise I didn’t say anything,’ Kim had said bashfully but then nodded towards Adam. It should have been obvious to them that Adam was the most likely cause of the leaked secret. But maybe it was good that people knew at this point, would save a hell of a lot of questions when they showed up with rings on their fingers.

Everytime the pair walked out together, the knowing looks would increase and comments including don’t be late for shift tomorrow or save your energy for the stakeout would follow them out the door.

‘Should we be offended or pleased that our friends think we make a cute couple?’ Jay said on one such night as they stood outside Molly’s waiting for their Uber.

‘Probably somewhere in the middle,’ Hailey said. ‘We’re best friends and I guess for some, the next logical step is dating.’ She shivered slightly from the cold. Noticing, Jay quickly shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around the blonde’s shoulders. Hailey breathed in the scent that had become all too familiar the last couple of weeks, it was comforting. ‘Thanks,’ she muttered, burrowing herself further into the jacket.

Jay just smiled at her, he would have done the same at any point in their relationship, the new dynamics hadn’t changed that, he thought to himself.

‘So we should probably discuss the weekend,’ Hailey said, and when Jay looked at her blankly, ‘the photographs we need to go and take for our apartment and the application.’

‘Ahh yeah, figured we could just go to all the classic tourist spots like Navy Pier and Cloud Gate? Maybe take a change of clothes so it doesn’t look like they were taken on the same day.’

Hailey nodded, ‘good idea. We might need some more romantic ones than that though, we could just be friends on a day trip if we only take the odd selfie.’

‘So you want me to drop down on one knee at the end of the pier?’ Jay smirked.

‘No, just make sure we look like a couple. Maybe hold hands or just..’ she tailed off, suddenly getting embarrassed over what she was asking him.

‘I get you, arm around your waist not your shoulder, pull you a little closer than I normally would,’ Jay’s voice went slightly huskier than usual. Just the cold air and the beer, Hailey told herself.

‘Yeah, umm yeah that’ll do it. I can google the most romantic places in Chicago too to try and get some ideas.’

‘We could drive up to Wisconsin too, make it look like we took a weekend trip or something? Couples do that right?’

‘Good idea, then that along with all the photos we have of us as a group or just random ones should give enough evidence to make this relationship look like the real deal.’

‘No cracks,’ Jay said.

‘No cracks,’ Hailey repeated back to him.

——————————————————————————

Trudy called loudly across the front desk, gesturing to Hailey that she wanted a word, ‘so you just weren’t going to tell me that you and Chuckles were an item?’ She asked with a smirk, raising an eyebrow at her.

‘Umm…,’ Hailey stuttered.

‘I had to find out by you both dropping off your change of address forms. And hoping that I wouldn’t find out because you dropped them off at different times?’

‘Sarge-’ Hailey started but was quickly interrupted.

‘You thought you could slip it past me Upton,’ she questioned.

‘It’s not like that, we just didn’t want to be the talk of the district,’ she tried to explain. Her and Jay had guessed something like this would happen but had decided it would be more like them to try and do it under wraps rather than making a big scene. It was unlike either of them to make a big song and dance about it and they needed this to look and feel as natural as possible, less reason for questions.

‘And you thought I couldn’t keep a secret,’ Trudy said. Her words implied upset however Hailey could see the smirk she was trying to conceal poking through.

‘We just didn’t want to put you in an awkward position Sarge, that’s the only reason we didn’t tell you. I promise,’ Hailey said apologetically.

‘Doesn’t matter, Randall told me weeks ago, apparently Ruzek’s been running his mouth at Molly’s.’

‘Yeah, we had guessed as much,’ Hailey rolled her eyes. Adam had never been good at keeping secrets. When he and Kim got together, everyone knew immediately as he couldn’t stop kissing her in very public places throughout the district.

‘I’m happy for you though,’ Trudy said sincerely, her smile turning from sarcastic to genuine, making Hailey blush. ‘Chuckles is a good guy but my loyalty to him will end in a second if he hurts you.’ And there was the protective side of the sergeant that Hailey loved and respected. She cared a lot, even if she didn’t always show it.

‘He won’t Sarge,’ Hailey said with a soft smile. She was pretty sure that Kevin and Adam had already given the same speech to Jay directly.

‘Good,’ Platt said, picking up the coffee cup from next to her and taking a long swig before adding, ‘oh, and I want an invite to the wedding.’

The colour immediately drained from Hailey’s cheeks, she knew? How could she know? They hadn’t said anything to anybody apart from Will and he had promised. ‘What?’ She spluttered.

‘Well that’s the next step right? You don’t move in together unless there’s a future and a future usually means a wedding. Unless you’re morally against that kind of thing,’ Trudy shot Hailey a questioning glance over her mug.

‘No, no we aren’t against that,’ she said, quickly thinking on her feet. She couldn’t say they were interested in marriage and then turn around in a couple of weeks and announce they were going to tie the knot. That would arouse far more suspicion than they needed.

‘Well when you’re both fully settled in, we should have dinner, Randall and I, and you and Chuckles,’ Trudy smiled.

‘Good idea,’ she panicked. ‘I’ll cook.’

——————————————————————————

‘You said you’d cook? Hailey, are you crazy?!’ Jay exclaimed loudly that evening when Hailey told him the news. She thought he’d think it was funny, Trudy wanting to actually spend time with them now they were officially a couple. But he clearly felt quite the opposite. She was thankful she had decided to wait until they got home to tell him the news and hadn’t told him in the bullpen or the break room. Explaining that reaction would have been difficult. ‘Now we are going to have to make sure we act like an actual couple the whole night.’

‘Jay, it’s Trudy, she’ll be fine,’ Hailey tried to calm him down. Patting the space next to her on the couch to try and cease his pacing back and forth.

‘She’s going to bite our heads off if she ever finds out we’ve played her,’ Jay said as he collapsed down next to her, dramatically throwing his arm over his head. ‘We’ll be dead.’

‘She’s not going to find out because it’ll be a perfect evening. I’ll cook up something nice, you can make sure we’ve got a bottle of something good in. We can act like a couple, we are both good at undercover, it’ll be fine,’ Hailey said firmly. ‘It will be fine,’ she repeated, trying to cement it in both her mind and Jay’s, they could get through this. It was just a dinner.

‘Promise?’ Jay said, turning his head to look at her and moving his arm.

‘I promise Jay,’ she smiled warmly and when Jay returned it, Hailey chose to ignore the warmth rising in her stomach. ‘But we do need to make sure this apartment looks like a couple actually lives here.’

‘So you’re saying we should go out and get those photos taken before we invite one of the most nit-picky Sergeant’s in the CPD into our home?’ He smirked, ‘yes, I think that’s probably a good idea Hailey.’

‘I looked up some of the most romantic spots in Chicago so if you’ve got no plans this weekend, we could go and take some then?’ Hailey said, blushing slightly at the prospect of having to go into the public eye and act like a couple, with photos to prove it.

‘I’m all yours,’ Jay smiled. ‘We can do that on Saturday, and Sunday drive up to Wisconsin?’

‘Oh yeah, the romantic weekend away. Sounds good to me,’ Hailey agreed.

——————————————————————————

When the weekend rolled around, having managed to push Trudy back a couple of times in the week and say they would most definitely be ready to host the following week, Jay and Hailey both packed a bag with a few different outfit changes, Hailey made sure she had the list of locations saved on her phone and the pair headed out onto the streets of Chicago.

According to Hailey’s list the first stop was Millenium Park to get the age old picture with the ‘Chicago Bean’ and then head over and get some at the fountain as well. When they got to Cloud Gate it was busy, it was a Saturday morning after all and it was one of, if not the most, recognisable locations in their city.

‘So, are we doing the cheesy selfie or getting a nice stranger to take our picture for us?’ Jay asked with a grin. They hadn’t discussed the logistics of getting the photos that were needed. Hailey had kind of anticipated that they would wing it.

‘Umm start with some selfies and if someone offers then we say yes?’ She suggested apprehensively.

‘Sounds good to me. Let’s go a bit closer so we can get our reflection in it as well,’ Jay strolled off towards it with a smile. Hailey had to chuckle, Jay was clearly enjoying himself, and she had been worried it would be awkward. But out here, away from the district and their friends, colleagues, they could just be them. Them was slightly different now, they were roommates, and in a fake relationship, but still, it was nice to be out and about. It felt freeing.

‘Come on Hails,’ Jay called over loudly, waking Hailey from the daydream she had slipped into. She hurried over and stood close to him so he could take the picture. ‘Come on, no one is going to believe it if you’re standing a foot away from me,’ Jay said with a chuckle, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her closer to him. Hailey’s hand naturally found a spot on his chest, only to steady herself from his movements, obviously, but she tucked herself in close, her head leaning against his shoulder. Jay took a few photos, adjusting the angle slightly with each one, moaning about the lighting and the reflection. She should have guessed that his perfectionist tendencies spilled over into photography as well.

‘Would you two like me to take a photo for you?’ An older woman asked them just as Jay was staring at his phone for the 4th time, this time the sun had caused a glare on the screen apparently.

‘That would be lovely, thank you,’ Hailey said with a smile, tugging the phone out of Jay’s hand and handing it over. She let him pull her into his side again, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist and her hand back in its position over his heart. What she didn’t expect was for Jay to tickle her side slightly just shortly after the lady began taking photos. She shrieked loudly, and swatted his hand away. He had found out she was ticklish on one of their stakeouts when they had been revealing secrets to each other. Stakeouts could be long and boring so it was a way to pass the time.

‘Jay!’ she said loudly but the smile was fixed on her face, he had found the spot that made her squeal like a little girl and she giggled every time.

‘I took a few for you,’ the stranger returned the phone to Jay with a smile. ‘You two make a very cute couple if you don’t mind me saying. Remind me of my late husband John and I,’ she added with a soft smile.

‘That’s very sweet, thank you for saying so,’ Jay said warmly. ‘Chicago local?’ He asked.

‘All my life,’ she said. ‘You two have a wonderful day,’ she smiled again and walked away. Hailey stared after her, if a random woman on the streets of Chicago thought they were a cute couple, maybe persuading the immigration department wouldn’t be so difficult after all.

‘She took some great ones,’ Jay said, showing Hailey the screen as he flicked through them. He was right, the selfies they had taken were nice enough but the ones that she had taken were much better, more natural somehow. And she had even managed to get some candid ones when Jay was tickling her, both their smiles wide and loud. Jay was looking down at her, his eyes bright even from the distance the picture had been taken at.

‘She really did,’ Hailey said softly. ‘Okay, next stop the fountain. But if you tickle me again, I may push you in.’

‘Well we wouldn’t want that now would we,’ Jay said with a smirk as they strolled to the other side of the park.

The experience at the fountain was similar, this time Jay insisted on taking some photos of just Hailey which although she initially objected, he made the very good point that if she really was his girlfriend, his camera roll should have multiple pictures of her. And not just the ones that he took on stakeouts or at work. He blushed when she brought that up and even though she had seen him snap the occasional picture, his reaction made her curious. She might have to ask to see some of those photos soon if they made his cheeks thar red.

Once again, a passerby offered to take their photos and to change it up this time, Jay stood directly behind Hailey and pulled her backwards into his chest wrapping his arms around her front. This made her smile even wider than before, Jay’s hug’s always made her feel safe, and this one was no different. She rested her hands on his arms, and allowed herself a moment to melt into his hold. It might not be real but that didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy it in the process.

Luckily the weather was in their favour today so when Jay’s phone was returned and they scrolled through the recent additions, they had come out beautifully. The blue sky against the backdrop of the city, the water sprays, their smiles. It was the perfect couple photo, Hailey thought to herself.

Before heading over to Navy Pier, Jay had made it clear it was a necessity for them to ride the Ferris Wheel, apparently that was what couples did, they went to get changed. The plan was to make the photos look like they were taken on different days and then Jay’s friend was going to change the metadata just in case anyone at immigration control would look into it.

Hailey had started the day in jeans and a camo green t-shirt, visiting Millenium Park seemed like something they might have done after work or just at random so Jay had chosen an equally non-descript blue t-shirt. Her second outfit choice was a little more ‘datey’ which is how she had explained it when talking to Jay that morning. Sticking with the same jeans, she had a flowy yellow top with tiny red flowers and had taken her hair down from the tight ponytail it had been in all morning, letting it cascade down past her shoulders, just pinning the front sections back to keep it out of her face. It was the Windy City after all.

When she exited the restroom she noticed Jay with her back to her, he had changed into a long sleeve button down, sticking with his dark blue colour. It was the colour he wore the most, but she wasn’t complaining. She wouldn’t tell him, but it brought out the green in his eyes.

‘Ready?’ She said as she approached. Jay turned round and she noticed his eyes widen for just a second, though if she blinked she would have missed it.

‘Of course. You look nice,’ Jay said with a smile. ‘I got the tickets whilst you were changing.’

‘Well aren’t you quite the gentleman. Even if you’re making me go on this death trap,’ Hailey said with a smirk.

‘It’s a Ferris Wheel Hailey, you face bullets everyday for a living!’

‘Coming from the guy who won’t get a flu shot,’ Hailey smirked, barging him gently with her shoulder.

‘Touché,’ Jay said, raising his hands in mock defeat. ‘But the view is great,’ he added with a quick wink before offering her his arm. She rolled her eyes but still tucked her arm into the crook of his elbow. They were supposed to be together after all.

Jay hadn’t been exaggerating. The views were incredible. The sky was clear and the city looked beautiful from the wheel. Their pod had 6 other occupants, a family of four whose kids were transfixed with the view, their eyes wide as saucers, and a young couple, Hailey guessed to be about 20 in age.

Because they had a constant audience, Jay hadn’t stopped having at least one point of contact with Hailey since they had entered the glass covered capsule. Her hand was either tucked in his, his hand on her back or an arm round her waist. They hadn’t discussed its necessity but had slipped into it easily, whispering in hushed voices about the views, keeping close contact at all time, naturally posing for selfies so when the young couple asked if they could take a photo for them, Hailey agreed without question. They then offered to return the favour so once again Hailey found her spot, tucked into Jay’s left side, her hand on his chest, this time she threw caution to the wind and pushed herself up on her tiptoes to place a quick peck to Jay’s cheek. She knew it had been the right decision when the girl taking the photo squealed about how adorable they were. If Hailey had taken a moment to glance up to Jay at this time, she would have seen his cheeks matching the colour of the flowers on her shirt.

The last stop of their Chicago date location tour was the SkyDeck. It usually sold out in advance of the day but Jay had checked last night and managed to snag a last minute reservation just before sundown. They had some time before their allotted slot so made the decision to go back to the apartment and do a final outfit change there, then it would appear that their singular day out would actually have been 3.

‘Hey Hails,’ Jay called after her as she headed straight into her bedroom when they arrived home. They only had about 30 minutes to get changed and back out so they could get to the Sears Tower in time.

‘Yeah,’ she answered, spinning around just before she reached the door.

‘Wear something fancy,’ he said with a smile, when Hailey raised her eyebrow to question, he chuckled. ‘Can’t get a surprise past you can I?’

‘You know me too well Halstead,’ she folded her arms dramatically in front of her, popping her hip as she did it. It was over the top but made Jay chuckle.

‘I booked us dinner for afterwards, figured we needed pictures from an actual dinner date. You know, like regular couples go on.’

‘Oh,’ Hailey said, shocked. He was right, a dinner date, the most simplest of activities had completely slipped her mind. ‘How fancy is fancy?’

‘I’m going to put on a jacket if that helps,’ he smirked as he walked into his bedroom. Turning back briefly before he closed the door, ‘but no tie,’ he winked and closed the door, leaving Hailey feeling the blush raising up her cheeks. They had always been close, had good banter between the two of them but this was flirting. Proper flirting, and she liked it.

About 20 minutes later, Jay knocked on her door, ‘Hails, you decent?’ he asked, opening the door slowly, giving her time to warn him if she wasn’t.

‘Yeah, just finishing my hair,’ she called out from the bathroom.

‘I’d offer to help but my knowledge of doing hair is limited to just a bit of gel and hope,’ Jay said with a chuckle, glancing around the room before perching at the edge of her bed.

Hailey had originally wanted to wear a dress, a piece of her wanted to impress Jay after his reaction to her yellow top earlier. But then she remembered that the skydeck had a glass section, she didn’t feel like risking flashing the streets below, so had settled on a pair of tight leather effect pants. She had paired them with a low cut, lower than she normally wore, forest green top, it had spaghetti straps that criss-crossed across an open back. Glancing at herself in the mirror, she wasn’t one to boast but she knew she looked good. Switching the curling iron off, she ran her fingers through her hair to loosen the curls.

‘Okay, fancy enough?’ she said as she walked into the room, giving Jay an over dramatic spin as she did so. She saw Jay’s jaw drop, and she smiled. ‘I’ll take that as a yes.’

‘You’ve been holding out on me Upton,’ he said, rubbing his hand over his face and straightening his jacket as he stood up. His dark grey suit jacket was paired with a black shirt, a couple of buttons undone, understated but it was doing wonders for him.

‘Yes, because this is the perfect attire for the bullpen or the stakeout van,’ she laughed.

‘Well I wouldn’t have complained,’ he said with sincerity and that blush that had almost taken up residency on Hailey’s cheeks today, returned with a vengeance.

‘You going to tell me where we are going for dinner?’ she asked as she grabbed her purse and keys.

‘Not a chance, you’ll find out soon enough,’ he said with a smirk.

——————————————————————————

Considering she had lived in the city for 3 years, she had never once been up the Sears Tower. It had always seemed like a tourist trap so she had avoided it. But as she stood next to the glass watching the sunset over her favourite skyline, the arm of her best friend snug around her waist, she wondered why she hadn’t. The view from up here was something else. She could feel her chest tighten as she looked over the city, the city that without the man standing next to her, she would have had to say goodbye too. She had been thankful for Jay since he had offered to marry her, but it was now when her gratefulness hit a new level. She loved this place and would forever be incredibly grateful that she didn’t have to pack her bags and leave.

‘Thank you,’ she murmured, not sure if Jay had heard her but when he squeezed her side she realised she had. He might ask her later what she was thanking him for, but for that moment it just mattered that he knew that she was thankful, the reason didn’t matter.

Someone tapped on Hailey’s shoulder and she was thrown unceremoniously back into the present when she turned around.

‘Sorry,’ a blonde haired girl in her early twenties said. ‘This might be weird but you two looked really cute so I took a couple of pictures, if you want me to send them to you I can,’ she handed over her phone to Hailey and Hailey couldn’t hold in the small ‘wow’ that escaped her.

They were almost silhouetted against the Chicago skyline, the outline of Jay’s arm tight around her back clear but the rest in shadows. The sky was filled with the oranges and pinks that tonight's sunset had brought, it was gorgeous.

‘Wow, that’s beautiful, yeah if you wouldn’t mind, we’d love them,’ Hailey said after a moment realising that she had been staring at the girl's phone without saying anything for a little longer than was socially acceptable.

‘I’ll airdrop it over to you,’ the girl said as she smiled.

‘Thank you, it’ll be Hailey or Jay, either of us is fine,’ Hailey said as she pulled out her phone and happily accepted the request once it appeared. ‘We really appreciate it, thank you,’ she said again.

‘Have a wonderful evening,’ she said as she turned and returned to the group of similar aged people she was clearly with.

‘Jay, look at this,’ she said breathily, showing him the picture. He had turned around when she had been talking but she hadn’t shown him the phone before she had happily accepted on their behalf.

‘She took that?’ he asked, surprised.

‘Yeah, that one is definitely going to make it on to the fridge,’ Hailey chuckled as she turned back to gaze over the city.

‘I think that one deserves a frame,’ Jay said quietly, resuming his position with his arm around her back, pulling her slightly closer than she had been a moment ago. ‘Pride of place.’

When they returned to street level, Jay had booked them dinner at a cosy Italian restaurant on Halsted called Piccolo Sogna. It was like being transported immediately to the Mediterranean with the deep blue walls and the crisp white table cloths. The smells of the food wafting in from the kitchen and the wait staff kept their wine glasses topped up, Hailey was in heaven.

It felt normal. Being on a date with Jay. Sure, they had eaten together plenty of times, probably more often than not especially over the last year of their partnership. But this was different. He had kept his palm flat on her back until they had reached the table where he had helped her take off her jacket and then had pulled out her chair for her when she sat down. Hailey let herself believe that it was real, just for a moment. That she was just a girl on a date with a boy.

She didn’t argue when he got out his phone and took pictures of her across the table. She giggled when he fed her a spoonful of his dessert from his plate. She didn’t say anything when he offered to pay, just thanked him with a smile. She happily accepted his open hand when he placed it on the table and when he took his hand in hers as they exited, she let herself believe, just for a moment, that it wasn’t all an act.

——————————————————————————

Jay woke her up early the next day with loud knocking on her door. They had agreed last night to head up to Wisconsin first thing, it was a pretty far drive up to the cabin that Jay had decided he was taking her too, so they needed to get on the road if they wanted to get there and back in the day without being too exhausted.

Although the 3 hour drive was long, it was comfortable. Being in each other’s company had always been comfortable and even though they had spent the previous day acting like a couple, in the confines of Jay’s truck, they were free just to be Hailey and Jay, no other connotations attached.

‘So, this is your family’s cabin?’ Hailey asked curiously, he had mentioned it in passing the previous day. She knew he had a cabin up there but he hadn’t really spoken about it, so when he said that’s where they should go, she was taken aback. The original plan had just been to drive into the neighbouring state, take some photos to make it look like they had had a weekend away, then return to Chicago. Going to visit his family’s cabin together felt like a step somehow, sure they had moved in together but this felt like a bigger deal. Like he was letting her into a part of his life that he hadn’t before.

‘Uhuh, it was my grandfather’s old fishing cabin. He had it relocated when he bought it and then would bring Will and I up here to fish in the summers. We loved it,’ Jay said with a smile as if he was reliving some fond memories. ‘Then when he passed, it got left to both of us. Dad was pissed about it, ranted on about how it should have been his, but Mom calmed him down. Will and I don’t use it that much anymore though,’ his smile turned slightly sad. ‘Life’s just a bit busy in the city these days, but I still love it. It’s just a place to be free, you know?’ He turned to look at Hailey briefly before returning his eyes to the road.

‘Sounds wonderful,’ she said softly.

‘It is.’

The rest of the drive was filled with either pleasant silences, comments about the weather or what was on the roadside or just Hailey’s spotify playlist playing through the radio. When they first partnered up, Jay wouldn’t allow any music in his truck, no radio, no playing music through a phone - it was always silent. It took some time but Hailey wore him down, so now when she hopped in and flicked on the radio, it would automatically be tuned to her favourite station and she’d even catch Jay singing along sometimes. She had heard from Kim however that this was only true when she was in the car, if anyone else was riding with him, his truck returned to its silent pre-Hailey state.

As they drew nearer, Jay started to point out places he had frequented as a child from roadside diners to various other bodies of water that they would venture out to sometimes if the lake was too still. It was easy to see why Jay liked it up here, the closer they got to the cabin, the more he relaxed, his hands slid to a less than legal position on the wheel, his shoulders loosened, he even wound down the window and flung his arm out at one point which made Hailey chuckle. Chicago Jay would never.

‘It’s just down here on the left,’ he said when they finally pulled onto a dirt road just off the highway. Hailey glanced around, even though they had only just left the main road, the trees and bushes were creating a sort of sound barrier so the only thing she could hear was the noise of the truck and the odd branch snapping underneath the tires. ‘Here we are,’ he said with a wide smile when they pulled up at their final destination.

Hailey’s jaw dropped. She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting but it certainly hadn’t been this. She had heard stories from Stella about how Kelly’s fathers cabin wasn’t very large and a little rundown and had expected this to be the same. But it was like it had jumped out the pages of a Disney fairytale. The wooden building, because Hailey was loath to call it a cabin when it was clearly larger than their own apartment, was two story’s tall, vines creeping up the side and flowers surrounding it on all sides. It looked like months of workmanship had gone into building it, and every hour had been worth it.

‘Wow,’ was all she managed to say as she climbed out the truck, unable to tear her eyes away from it. It had a large porch out the front, complete with a porch swing, the same type with the wooden bench that she had always wanted as a kid but her father had told her was a waste of money. She walked up to it slowly, still taking everything in.

‘Come on, I’ll give you the tour before we take our photos,’ Jay said as he walked past her, taking the porch steps two at a time, unlocking the door and opening it wide for her. ‘Come on Hails,’ he said again when she had remained stuck in the same spot. Shaking herself back into the present, Hailey followed Jay up the steps and into the cabin.

If the outside took her breath away, it was nothing compared to the inside. Jay led her into the main room which she had been correct in thinking had a greater square footage than their apartment. It was completely open plan with a big kitchen that housed a dining table large enough to fit 6 people comfortably, and the living room with two large cosy looking sofas and a fireplace. Although the room was large, it was rustic and felt very homely - she could see why Jay loved coming up here as a kid.

She followed Jay as he wandered upstairs, showing her the two bedrooms; the large master which had an ensuite with a claw foot bathtub that Hailey was itching to try out, and the second smaller one at the end of the corridor, complete with bunk beds.

‘So were you a top bunk or a bottom bunk kid?’ She asked jovially, glancing around the room. There were still remnants here from when Will and Jay had visited in their youth, old baseball cards stuck to the walls, worn children’s books on the shelves and a couple of child sized fishing poles propped in the corner.

‘Top, I wanted the bottom one but Will declared as he was older he got to pick,’ he said with a grin. ‘Luckily he only kicked the mattress when I really pissed him off, and as you are well aware, I am an angel so that never happened.’ He winked at her as he closed the door.

‘I feel like Will might give a different opinion on that,’ she chuckled.

‘I thought we could head out to the dock and take some pictures out there? It’s right out on the lake and you can’t see any of the other properties on it because of the angle,’ he suggested as the pair made their way back downstairs.

‘Lead the way,’ Hailey said with a smile.

The dock and the backyard, if a backyard was really the correct term, were just as gorgeous as the rest of the house. The dock led out onto the bluest water Hailey had ever seen. An image flashed before her eyes, of summer nights spent sat on the end of the dock, Jay next to her, a cold beer in hand, a blanket nearby in case they got cold, when Jay would wrap it around the pair of them and pull her close.

‘Hails,’ Jay’s voice was loud enough to break into Hailey’s subconscious.

‘Wha-?’ she answered, pretending that she hadn’t just been daydreaming about him.

‘Come on, I’ll prop my phone against this chair and we can use the timer,’ he said with a smile, his emerald eyes shining at her.

They spent the next 40 minutes or so running up and down the dock trying to get a variety of photos in a myriad of poses. They had some classic arms around each other shots, some more cute hugging ones. Jay thought it would be hilarious to jump on her back at one point so they had a few where they were both collapsed on the ground in fits of giggles. They also took a couple where they were sitting at the edge, their feet dangling in the water so the camera would just catch their backs with Jay’s arm wrapped around her, her head resting against him.

Heading back to the porch, they took one more snuggled up on the porch swing. Hailey had started to get chilly so instead of getting her own sweater out of the truck, Jay had pulled his off and tugged it down over her head. She breathed in the scent that was so uniquely Jay, clean laundry mixed with cedarwood, it was incredibly calming. The photo of them both cuddled on the swing, her wearing his clothes had to seal the deal in terms of the immigration checks. If anyone had looked at it they would assume the pair were madly in love, planning a future together, who spent every waking hour thinking about each other. Instead of a girl who needed a visa and a guy who was such a good friend he’d marry her to get one.

The drive home was longer than the way up had been, they hadn’t timed it well and ran into a lot of Sunday afternoon traffic. Hailey offered to drive but, like he always did, Jay assured her that he was fine and told her she could close her eyes if it helped to pass the time.

She didn’t intend to take him up on the offer but when he shook her awake after they had parked up at their building, the sky was dark and she realised she must have fallen asleep. She was still wearing his sweater and when they got back up to the apartment, she hung it in her own wardrobe, instead of returning it to his.

[afriendlyneighborhoodhufflepuff]

I saw your work and I thought that you would write some Stellaride story? Something cute like two of them celebrating first Christmas with their baby? 💕

Anon I hope you enjoy! It’s short but sweet

Stella couldn’t help but laugh as her baby babbles to Mouch and Hermann, who give him their full attention. She hears the two men answer Ryan like they would anyone else, and she loves it. Stella and Kelly had dropped him off with Cindy that morning, who offered to watch him since he was born, and she would sometimes visit, usually to talk to Hermann about something at home. “Hey, Ryan, why don't we go see mom? She looks like she wants some hugs.” Hermann says as the ten-month-old starts to crawl towards her, quickly scooping him up and bringing him to Stella’s open arms.

“Thanks, Hermann.” She responds as she adjusts Ryan in her arms. “You, dude, are getting too curious for your own good. First trying to attack an outlet at home and now crawling around the station.” She says as he rests his head on her shoulder, yawning. “Let’s see if daddy’s around. I bet he’d like to see you.” Stella whispers as she makes her way to Kelly’s office.

“Hey, babe. Guess who’s here.” “Your mini-me with my eyes?” “You betcha. He’s probably ready to nap, but seeing dad won’t hurt.” “Figures. I’ve missed him and his antics.” He says as Stella steps into the room, taking the baby into his arms. “Babe, we gotta figure out how we’ll do Christmas with him.” “We’re not working, and the tree is up with no glass ornaments, Casey and I made sure of that with stuff that Brett bought. They bought some for themselves since Jordan likes to grab things at the moment.” “Good. I want it to be good for him.” “It will be. I promise.” He smiles, kissing his wife’s forehead, which brings a noise of frustration from his son.

“I’m not forgetting about you, buddy.” He says, placing a soft kiss on the top of Ryan’s head. Eventually, Cindy takes Ryan home, and Stella and Kelly return to the station's routine. The pair work in tandem on calls and ensure the other is safe along with the rest of the crew.

A few weeks pass, and it’s Christmas morning. Stella wakes up and finds the other side of the bed empty. She hears voices from the living room and makes her way to that part of the house. “Merry Christmas, love,” Kelly says as she walks in, and Ryan babbles to his mom as he tries to crawl towards her. “Merry Christmas to my favorite boys!” She exclaims as she sits on the floor near Ryan and gives a wink to her husband. The pair help their son open the gifts and exchange gifts with each other. Pictures are taken, and while she knows that Ryan won’t remember this, she and Kelly will, and she realizes that’s what matters most. The time with her family will never be taken for granted.