Back to You | Stellaride

chapter three

a/n: okay, last episode made me so happy! and the sneak peak for next week is amazing. i really hope stellaride become a thing again. here's chapter 3!
Severide's POV:

It's been a few days since Kidd was admitted to Med. I've spent most of my time there, waiting for her to wake up. Everyone else has been in and out, but there's still no visitors except for me allowed back there.

We have shift for the first time since the collapse. Boden tried to tell me to take time off, but that's the last thing I want to do. I need a distraction.

I walk into the firehouse and into the locker room, surprisingly I'm the first one there. After taking a few minutes to get changed and put some stuff away, Otis walks in. "Hey, how are you doing?" he asks with a sad tone. I shrug, "I don't know. I'm just waiting," I said. "How is she?" he asks. "There's been no improvement or decline so, I guess that's good," I say unsure.  "Briefing room, five minutes," Boden says walking in and out of the locker room.

I walk into the briefing room and lean against the back wall. Everyone files into the room, sitting in various spots. "So, I know a very important member of the family is gone right now," Boden starts, "She is unfortunately still in a coma, with no changes. Please continue to keep Kidd in your prayers. She going to need it even more when she recovers from this. We have Cardova here to fill in for her until she is back," he says. "But that could be a year," I say. "Severide," Casey says, putting a hand on my back. "I understand, but we can't be a man short on truck. Dismissed," Boden says.

We start to file out and Cardova walks over to me. "Hey, sorry about before. I'm just under a lot of stress right now," I say before he can speak. He nods, "No worries, I completely get it," he answers. 

We walk into the common room to grab breakfast. I grab some cereal and sit at the table, next to Cruz and Brett. No one spoke. You could feel her energy missing in the room. "Is anyone with her now?" Brett asks. I shake my head. "What about her family?" Cruz asked. "As far as I know, she doesn't have any. Once she said both of her parents died but for anyone else, I have no idea," I say. Before either one of them could answer, the intercom went off, summoning all units to a fire.

It was a restaurant fire, nothing serious. We ride back on the truck in almost complete silence, which is unusual. "Can we make a quick stop?" I ask. Cruz nods, knowing exactly what I'm about to ask.

We pull into the hospital and all of us get out. We walk inside and bump into Dr. Rhodes. "Severide, I'm glad you're here. I was just about to call you," he says. "Why?" I ask concerned. "She's awake," he said. "What?" I say, a little shocked. "Yeah, she woke up about 15 minutes ago," he said, "The doctors should be done, so all of you can go inside." We nod and walk in the direction of her room.

I knock quietly before opening and peer over the door. There she was, her eyes open but still not looking fully awake. We walk in and over to her bed. "Hey," she said very quiet and weak, "Thanks for coming." I sit in the same chair I have been sleeping in and look at her. "We'll give you a minute," Cruz says as the rest of them walk out back into the hallway. "Have you been sleeping here?" She asks. "What makes you think that?" I ask her back. "You look tired and you left some of your stuff here," she said pointing to a bag. I nod at her question. "Why?" she asks confused. "Because I care about you," I say. "How are you feeling?" I ask. "Not bad, my leg hurts and so do my ribs but I feel fine other than that," she lies. "I know you're lying," I say, "You can say that you're in pain, it doesn't make you look weak." She sighs, "Okay fine, yes I am in a lot of pain. My leg feels like it's about to fall off, my ribs burn, and my head is throbbing," she finally admits. I place my hand on her shoulder, careful not to hurt her. "Go back to the house, i'll be fine," she says. "Are you sure? Capp can take over as lieutenant and I can stay," I offer. She shakes her head, which looked painful, "No, you go. Take some time for yourself," she says. I nod, walking towards the door. How is it that she's in pain, but cares about me? I want so badly to tell her that I love her still, but I don't know how she'll react. She won't admit her true feelings, even if they're still there.

We drive back to the firehouse and go into the common room for dinner. "Did we miss something?" Casey asked. "What do you mean?" I ask. "You guys were gone for a while," he said. My eyes go wide. I never told them we were stopping at the hospital. "My bad, we decided to stop at the hospital on the way back," I explain. "Any changes?" he asked. I grin appears on my face, "She's awake," I say, loud enough for everyone to hear.

Everyone had a look of relief, happiness, and shock. Cheers could be heard all around. I wish Kidd was here to see how much we appreciate her. Casey gives me a quick hug, Herrmann and Mouch did the same.

*the next day at molly's

"Okay, okay, everyone shh," Herrmann says, making everyone laugh. The bar goes silent. "Now, I know we have a member of the family in the hospital. That boot over there is to help her pay for all of her medical bills she's going to have," he said, pointing to a boot near Brett, "I'm glad to say she's awake now but, she's going to have a long road ahead. Her energy is really missed in the house. Please keep her in your thoughts while we wish her a quick recovery," Herrmann announced. "Here, here!" was heard around the room.

When the bar started to clear out, Herrmann took the seat next to me. "Have you told her how you feel yet?" he asks. I shake my head, "No. I mean she just woke up," I say. "Okay, but you might want to do it soon. You never know what could happen and if something goes bad, you might never be able to tell her," he says, "That already almost happened." I nod, putting my head in my arms. I guess I need to tell her, sooner than later.

a/n: there's chapter 3! -honey