29. Chapter 29 (Epilogue)

A/N: Hi friends! Hope you like this epilogue; I know a lot of you wanted some bits of the Burzek wedding so hopefully this satisfies your demands!

Apologies for any spelling mistakes – it's 6:10am here and I pulled an all-nighter to get this finished, so I'm a bit sleep deprived!

Thank you for coming on this ride with me x

Enjoy!

March 26th, 2016

Erin smiles as the sonogram taped to the wall inside her and Jay's walk-in closet. They had seen the doctor yesterday afternoon for their scheduled check-up. Erin was officially at the three-month mark of her pregnancy.

"I can't believe we're at the second trimester already," Jay said softly wrapping his arms around Erin from behind "I can't wait to tell everyone, see all their reactions this time around. At least Hank won't try to knock me out."

"I don't want to tell anyone just yet." Erin whispers nervously.

Jay freezes and she turns in his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck "I just want to be sure that nothing's going to happen. It's still early."

"You're 12 weeks Erin, Doctor Greene said it was perfectly safe to start telling people." Jay reasons.

"I know she did, but I just don't want to jinx it. Especially after all we've been through lately." Erin sighs.

It had been an eventful few weeks for them since Ben's kidnapping. Jay and Erin had been walking on eggshells for days after, worrying over their son more than usual and Jay worrying over Erin even more so now that she was pregnant again. Yates' case had officially been closed four days ago; Erin being cleared of any wrongdoing, IA agreeing it was a clean shoot despite her personal involvement in the case.

Hiding their pregnancy had felt more difficult this time around; unlike with Ben, both were less nervous about sharing this news, and felt excited about going through this journey again. But they had managed to keep their news under wraps. Fortunately for Erin, her morning sickness had been much less intense during her second pregnancy, making it much easier for her to hide her symptoms in front of her colleagues.

"I get it," Jay kisses her cheek looking at the sonogram behind them "But just so you know, everything will be okay Erin. I believe that with all my heart, but you have to believe it too. I don't want you spending this entire pregnancy stressed out waiting for the other shoe to drop. I want you to enjoy every moment of this, okay?"

Erin nods "I'll try. It's difficult, but I'll get there. I promise."

"That's all I ask, and I promise we'll wait as long as you need to." Jay smiles.

Erin kisses him lightly before stepping out of his arms "We better get ready, Kim will kill me if we're late."

Jay watches her grab their garment bags and move to put them on the bed, lightly smacking her behind as she walks past him.

"Jay!" she exclaims shocked.

Jay shrugs, kissing her cheek as he walks past her to wake up Ben "Sorry, couldn't resist."

He smirks as Erin shakes her head.

Erin looked at herself in the mirror, standing side-on. You couldn't see the baby bump unless you were looking for it, but she had not accounted on her 'popping' even the slightest bit at this point in her pregnancy. Her dress, however, did not help matters.

Kim had picked out a peach satin halter-neck dress with lace detailing. The dress was fitted on the top half and flaring out slightly as it reached the floor. Erin could feel the material struggling to lay flat against her stomach, her fingers pulling at the material self-consciously.

"You good?" Erin turned around; eyes wide as she saw Kim staring at her.

Erin laughed nervously "Yeah, must have put on a little weight between last fitting and now."

Kim nodded, walking over to her and handing her a champagne glass. Erin looked at the beverage sceptically, taking it and sniffing subtly.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Mimosa; basically, just a fancy word for OJ and champagne that makes it seem more socially acceptable to drink at 10am." Kim laughs taking a sip.

"You know, I'm good actually. Champagne makes me a bit woozy." Erin hands her the glass.

Kim gives her a look "I've seen you skull three champagnes in a row when you realised they had strawberries in the bottom of the glass."

"Yeah, and I didn't come into work the next morning." Erin laughs.

Truthfully, her hangover was more to do with the fact that it been her first time drinking since she had given birth, and she had about four glasses of scotch before Kim had arrived that night. But she wasn't going to tell her friend that.

"Okay…" Kim trails off, unsure "You know, I haven't seen you have a drink in- "

"There you are!" both girls turn their attention to Kim's mother and sister, both in their bridesmaid dresses "We've got to get you into your wedding dress! The driver will be here in twenty minutes!"

Kim smiled at the older woman "Mum, it's fine. My dress takes like five minutes to get into. Relax."

Nicole walks up to them grabbing Kim by the arm "Just humour her, she's driving me crazy thinking we're going to make you late to your own wedding."

Kim rolls her eyes, handing Erin her both glasses "Help me." She groans.

"I'll be right there." Erin laughs as Kim is dragged away by her sister.

She waits until Kim is in the other room to change into her dress, before pouring the liquid into the plant in the corner of the room. She sets the empty glasses on the small table next to her.

"Erin!" Kim calls out, the panic evident in her voice.

"Coming." Erin calls back, laughing.

Kim's mother had been stressing her out more and more as the wedding grew closer. She knew that her mum just wanted things to be perfect for her daughter's big day, and while Erin found it amusing and endearing how much Mrs. Burgess stressed over every little detail, Kim had begged her maid-of-honour to ensure that she didn't accidentally strangle her mother in a fit of rage. Erin speeds up her pace when she hears Kim yelling louder.

"Mom, what? I don't want a train. My dress does not need to be lengthened!"

"You ready?" Erin asks softly, fixing Kim's hair so it wasn't falling in front of her face.

Mrs. Burgess and Nicole had already begun their walk down from the guesthouse on the property and out to their place behind Kim and Adam at the make-shift altar. They had both been worried that an outdoor wedding in March was risky, but luckily the weather had held strong for them.

Kim smiles back widely, clutching her bouquet tightly "I've never been more ready in my life."

"Hey, we gotta go," Jay said walking into the room stopping short when he saw them both "Wow."

"That better be a good 'wow' Halstead." Kim joked

"Oh definitely. You are a vision in white, Kimberley," Jay grinned turning his attention to Erin "You look beautiful baby."

"You don't look too bad yourself. Who knew you cleaned up so nicely?" Erin said placing her hands on his shoulder and giving him a quick kiss.

"I like to save it for special occasions. I know how you get when I wear a suit." Jay smirks

"Hey, this is really sweet and all, but you're about to miss your cue." Kim interrupts, nodding towards the door where the event coordinator was signalling for them.

Jay walks towards the exit while Erin turns back to Kim "I'll see you out there, Kimberley Burgess."

"Soon to be Ruzek," Kim smiles "Thank you for everything Erin, I know this wasn't the easiest thing to do, especially given everything else you've had going on recently…"

"There's no one else I would do this for Kim. I know I don't say it a lot, but you're my best friend, you know that? You've been there for me more than most people I've known in my lifetime. I'm thrilled to be your maid-of-honour."

Kim wrapped one arm around Erin's shoulder, pulling her in for a hug "Okay, you guys gotta go now. You're gonna make me cry, and I don't have time to fix my makeup."

They both laughed softly as they pulled apart, Erin heading towards Jay.

…

"And now, introducing for the first time – Adam and Kimberley Ruzek!" the MC announced as the guests cheered.

Adam and Kim walked into the reception, smiling and waving at their friends and family. Everyone settled as the music began to play softly, Adam pulling Kim into his arms as they began the first dance.

Erin stood bouncing Ben in her arms in time to the music as they watched the newlyweds. She smiled when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist from behind, Jay pulling her back against him.

"That's going to be us one day." Jay whispers into the crook of her neck leaning his chin against her shoulder.

Erin arches a brow, looking back at him sceptically "Don't make promises you can't keep, Halstead."

"Oh, believe me, I plan on keeping it. Much sooner than you think," Jay says lowly "Besides, I like the way Erin Halstead sounds."

Erin frowned at his words. 'Much sooner than you think'. What the heck did that mean? She turned in his arms, but before she could get the words out the MC spoke.

"We now invite our other couples out onto the dancefloor to share in this moment with the newlyweds. Grab your partner and show us what you got!"

Jay removed his arms from Erin, taking her hand and pulling her out onto the dancefloor with him. Erin stumbled along, dazed by his words and distracted by the infant she was trying not to drop from her other arm.

Erin kept one arm under Ben's legs and the other wrapped around the top of Jay's shoulders, her partner intertwining his hands at her hips holding her tightly to him. Ben's head lay against Erin's chest as he dozed off, their son already tired out from today's events.

"This isn't the most efficient way to dance." Erin said softly looking up at him.

Jay shrugged looking at Ben "I'm not the best dancer anyways, so this is pretty perfect. Our little family." He said kissing the top of her head as best he could.

"I meant what I said Erin. I'm going to marry you one day." Jay promises.

Erin's eyes meet his, she swears she can see the love shining from his piercing green eyes.

"I know," she says softly "And I hope you know, whenever that day comes is fine. You don't have to feel pressured into it just because we're pregnant again."

"That's not it, Er. I would've made you a Halstead a long time ago if I had my way. But I made an agreement with someone that there was a specific way, and date, that I was to propose to you on."

Erin looked confused "What do you mean? Who the heck have you been talking to? I swear if Ruzek talked you into a stupid flash mob proposal, I- "

Jay laughed "God no, never. It'll all make sense soon enough babe."

"You know I hate surprises." Erin groans

He leans over and kisses her softly, mindful of the sleeping child between them "I promise, you'll love this one."

Jay turns them in his arms quickly, making Erin laugh, the topic of conversation forgotten as they clumsily tried to dance while ensuring they didn't drop their sleeping child.

…

"You okay Darlin'?" Adam whispers into her ear "You're very tense. Regretting this already?"

"Oh yeah, I'm trying to find the right moment to go to the bathroom so I can sneak out the window like Emily did to Ross." Kim jokes, nodding her head towards Erin and Jay "Something's going on with them."

Adam turns his head towards their friends as they dance with Ben sleeping between them "Erin or Jay?'

"Take your pick. I think Erin might be pregnant." Kim says suspiciously.

Adam snorts in reply "I know you want them to have more kids Burgess, and I'm inclined to agree because their kids are pretty cute, but I think these suspicions are just wishful thinking on your part."

"I'm telling you Adam. Erin hasn't been drinking lately, she flat-out refused the mimosa I gave her today. And remember when Antonio wore that weird cologne that Laura gave him for Valentine's Day? She looked like she was about to pass out."

"Okay, that does seem a bit odd … But they've both been through a lot recently. I think it's just all the stress they've been under, it would do a number on anyone's health," Adam reasons "I'm telling you, there's no way she's pregnant. Her boobs got huge the last time, and they're looking the same as always at the moment."

"Is it too late to get a divorce?" Kim scowls shaking her head "Honestly Adam, that's your best friend's partner. Not to mention my best friend; if he doesn't slap you, I will."

"Oh, Jay knows I talk about Erin. I tell him all the time." Her husband replies.

Kim rolls her eyes "Okay, this conversation is done." She says moving out of his hold.

Before she can get far Adam grips her wrist, spinning her back into his embrace.

"Don't be jealous Darlin'. I married you, didn't I?" Adam chuckles "besides, Jay knows that I'm not into Erin like that. The only reason he lets me get away with it is because I constantly tell him how fucking lucky we both are to have gotten the two most perfect women to even look our way, let alone fall in love with us, have our kids, or agree to spend the rest of their lives with us."

"You're lucky you're so cheesy, sweetheart." Kim says, trying and failing to hold in her smile.

"I love you Burgess, thank you agreeing to spend the rest of your life with me," Adam kisses her "Even when you're making up crazy conspiracy theories about our friends."

"I'm telling you, she's pregnant!" Kim exclaims scowling at her husband "Okay, how about this? If Erin announces she's pregnant within the next month, you have to take me to that bed and breakfast in Wisconsin that I've been begging you to go to."

"What's in it for me?" Adam groans

"What do you want?" his wife asks.

He stays quiet for a moment, before smirking "If she's not pregnant, we do that thing I like."

"… the thing we rarely do, or the thing we never do?" Kim replies

Adam chuckles "I'm not that cruel Burgess. The thing we sometimes do."

Kim nods "Okay, I'll play. Shall we shake on it?"

"I got a better idea." Adam grins, leaning down and kissing her deeply.

They pull apart a few moments later, both breathless. Kim smiles up at him, "And by the way, it's Ruzek."

Adam looks at her confused, so she explains "You called me Burgess. It's Ruzek."

They both smile widely, Adam kissing her again "You're damn right it is. Forever."

April 12th, 2016

Erin clutches the flowers tightly in her hand as she walks through the grass. She can see her in the distance, and her heart aches at the sight.

It was Nadia's first death anniversary.

Jay had offered to come with her to visit, but Erin had insisted that this was something she needed to do alone. He had let it go, agreeing to go with the unit later tonight instead.

"Hi," she said as she reached her tombstone "I don't really know what to say. It's not exactly a 'happy anniversary' type of thing."

Erin sat down to the side of the stone, placing the lilacs down gently "I got your favourites. They didn't have the purple ones you like, so I went with white. Hope that's okay."

Her fingers brushed against Nadia's name, sighing "It's not fair. I don't think I'll ever be able to let that go, how quickly your life was cut short. But I'm trying to move forward, for you and Jay and Ben. For all our friends that care so much. It's hard, some days it feels like I'll never be able to move on, but lately it's been good."

Her hands move down to caress her now-evident baby bump "I'm four months pregnant, but you probably already know," she laughs softly looking up at the sky "We've been allowed to tell people for a while, but I wasn't ready. I guess … you were the first person I wanted to say the words out loud too."

Tears prick Erin's eyes as she takes a deep breath "I wish you were still here. I know you would've loved this baby just as much as you loved Ben. You loved him like he was your own."

FLASHBACK

Erin sighs as she shuffles on the couch, trying to ignore the tightness she feels in her back. She was two weeks away from her due date and growing more uncomfortable by the minute. It felt like her body had been stretched to its limit, and as much as she had enjoyed her pregnancy, she was more than ready for her baby to get the heck out of her.

"Ugh, this is useless!" Nadia leaned back against the couch "I'm never going to remember all of these codes. I'm going to fail!"

Erin chuckled at her roommate, nudging her foot into the younger girl's shoulder "You'll be fine Nads. You just need to take a break; you're going to burn out if you keep stressing it this hard."

"If I don't get these penal codes 100% perfect, I'm screwed. I might as well not even bother taking the exam at this point!" Nadia exclaims.

"You're overthinking this way too much. You've got this, I've heard you memorising this shit back and forth for the last two weeks. You're prepared. Stop doubting yourself." Erin winced as she moved again, pain shooting up her back.

Nadia's attention snaps from her textbook to her heavily-pregnant friend "What's wrong?"

"My back is killing me," Erin chuckles painfully "perks of carrying around near 7-pounds inside your womb."

"I think we should go to the hospital; you could be going into labour. Jay said back pain was one of the signs of pre-labour." Nadia rambled.

Erin shakes her head "Freakin' Jay. He's as worked up as you are at this point. It'll be fine Nadia. Jay will be here soon enough with dinner, and if it's still troubling me after we eat then he can take me to the hospital to check things out. I don't want to take away from your study time."

"Jay's coming over? You didn't mention that." Nadia moves to sit next to Erin on the couch.

"He texted asking if I had eaten yet, but I think he's just paranoid he's going to miss us calling him to tell him that I've gone into labour."

"He's been over a lot lately."

Erin frowns "Well, he is the father of my child."

"But that's not all he is." Nadia presses

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Nadia rolls her eyes "Come on Erin. You can't honestly tell me that Jay is just the father of your child. Something's changed between you two the last few months."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Erin scoffs as she takes a sip of the tea she had sitting on the coffee table.

"There's something happening; I've seen the looks between you two, the way he kisses the top of your head when he thinks no one is looking, the way you lean into him when he puts his arm around you. You're too comfortable with one another to just be partners. At least, not in the way you guys say you are." Nadia explains "I'm honestly surprised you two haven't hooked up yet."

"I'm full-term Nadia. I can barely get out of bed on my own, let alone have sex."

"I saw a lot of things in those pregnancy books, you'd be surprised the things a pregnant woman can do." Nadia shrugs.

"Okay, I am not talking about this with you. Nothing is going on between Jay and I, even if we wanted something to … It's just not going to happen, okay?" Erin sighs.

"I'm just saying," Nadia holds her hands up in surrender "I've seen the way he is with you, and how vulnerable you allow yourself to be with him. I can practically see your future together. And let me tell you, it's damn good."

Erin is silent, her eyes glazed over as she thinks about Nadia's words. She shakes her head, stopping the obtrusive thoughts from going any further, and turns to her friend.

"How about you? What does your future look like?" Erin questions "I know you want to be Police Officer, but what about marriage? Kids? Are you ever going to date, even?"

"Dating's not a priority for me right now. Besides, I'm only 20." Nadia reasons "I have plenty of time for that drama. But yeah, one day … I can see myself settling down. Marrying a nice guy, getting to come home to him and our kids."

Erin smiles, holding the other woman's hand "It's a nice thought."

"I guess …who knows. Considering all the crap I've put my body through, and all the shit I've put into it, I may not even be able to have kids by the time I'm old enough to really start planning for that." Nadia chuckles uncomfortably.

"Nadia, I should be proof enough that there's always hope. I was hooked on a lot harder shit for a lot longer than you were. But here I am," Erin says rubbing her belly "If it's something that you want, then you'll find a way to make it happen. You're nothing if not perseverant."

"Thanks. Luckily, I have lots of time to worry about kids. I got to worry about finding a guy worth having a kid with first," Nadia smiles picking up her textbook from the floor "Actually, scratch that. I need to worry about passing my finals. Everything else can wait."

The sound of a key turning in their door lock distracts them, Jay walking through the front door with a large paper bag in hand. He kicks off his shoes, sliding them against the wall with his foot before walking into the living room.

"Hey," he smiles at the two women "I got your favourite."

"You're amazing." Erin says looking at the container he pulls out from the bag.

"I know you're talking to the food, but thank you." Jay jokes.

Erin smiles sheepishly "You're not so bad either, Halstead. Thank you, I appreciate it."

he hands Erin the food and she runs her hand down his arm, squeezing his hand as he leans down to kiss the top of her head before turning around to pull more food out of the bag.

Nadia quirks an eyebrow at her friend, the look on her face speaking for itself. Erin shakes her head as she starts eating.

"Shut up." She grumbles through a forkful of food, as Nadia giggles at her.

Jay looks at them confused "What did I miss?"

Erin looks nervously at Nadia, who simply shakes her head "Nothing. It's not important."

"Okay…" Jay says sceptically, handing Nadia a container "I got you orange chicken. Figured if Erin hadn't eaten, you must not have taken a break yet either."

Nadia smiles gratefully "I know Erin said it already, but you Jay Halstead are my hero."

Jay shakes his head at the two of them "I don't know what you would do without me. My baby would probably be malnourished."

"Probably." Nadia agrees, Erin kicking her from her side of the couch.

"Sit down Jay, you must be tired." Erin says, shuffling over so he has space between them to sit.

"Let me grab the hot sauce, I don't want you making me run to get it after I get comfy." Jay says with a chuckle.

"Damn, you really are my house-husband, huh?" Erin says as he walks into the kitchen.

"He's probably a damn good husband too." Nadia mumbles as Erin scowls at her "Don't look at me like, you know I'm right."

"I'm not even going to entertain this." Erin scoffs continuing to eat.

Nadia smirks "Whatever you say, Mrs Halstead."

"I want you to know how proud of you I was. How proud of you I still am. All this time, I thought I was the one helping you … but you helped me just as much. You helped me believe I could be a mother, you convinced me to open up to Jay and let him in. You saved me just as much as you claim I saved you … I love you, Nadia. Thank you for everything."

Erin sat quietly, letting the gentle wind envelop her. It felt comforting; she liked to believe it was Nadia somehow, letting Erin know she was there. That she loved her too.

"I'll see you soon." She whispered, her hand touching her lips then connecting it to the tombstone for a minute, before she stood up and slowly walked away.

Coming here felt sad, knowing that Nadia was there instead of living the life she had worked so hard to attain. But for the first time since Nadia's death, Erin felt lighter. She had a future to look towards, one that Nadia would want her to live to the fullest. And she would do just that. For Nadia.

April 13th, 2016

Erin could feel the light shining against her eyelids, moving away from its intensity and trying to burrow herself further into the comfort of her bed. The sound of Jay's voice, singing off-key, made her peep one eye open and pull the blanket down from over her head.

"Happy Birthday to you…"

She smiled tiredly as she saw him walk into the bedroom, Ben settled on his hip as he held a cupcake with a single candle in it. He placed Ben down on the bed, who bounced over to his mother happily. Jay sat down next to them, finishing his off-key rendition of 'Happy Birthday'.

"Make a wish." Jay smiled.

Erin sat up slightly, leaning on one arm as she rubbed her eyes. She leaned in, closing her eyes and gently blowing out the candle.

"Happy Birthday Erin." Jay said leaning in to kiss her, handing her a small box "This is from Ben, isn't that right little man?"

Ben nodded at his Dad as he hugged his mother, his little arms trying their best to wrap around her shoulder as he tried to crawl on top of her. Erin laughed, turning so she was on her back and picking up the 17-month-old boy, holding him up above her as he squealed excitedly.

Erin gently pried open the box, a silver necklace with two thin white-gold letters hanging delicately; J and B.

"I figured we can keep adding onto it, as our family grows. I hope it's okay. I know jewellery isn't really your thing, but Ben really liked it." Jay quips.

"Oh he did, did he?" Erin smiles up at him "Thank you. This is the sweetest gift."

"Wait, there's one more part … Ben, can you tell Mama what I told you earlier?" Jay asked.

Ben looked over at his dad, who was nodding his head encouragingly at him. His eyes travelled back to his mum, smiling brightly at her.

"Hap-ee Borf-day!" his words stumbled out excitedly, clapping his hands together after he finished.

"Good job buddy." Jay chuckled ruffling his son's bedhead.

Erin felt her heart warm, hugging Ben tight "thank you sweetie. I love you."

"love oo." He murmured back.

Ben's vocabulary grew more and more each day. While Erin and Jay were excited to see their son learn and grow, they both shared the ache in their heart knowing that their baby boy wasn't so much of a baby anymore.

"He's getting so big." Erin sighed.

"I know," Jay agreed "But pretty soon we'll be doing it all over again."

They smiled at one another as Jay scooted down the bed, lying next to Erin and placing his hand over her stomach.

"Are you okay? I know yesterday was hard, it's okay if you're not feeling up to it today." Jay asks her.

"You know, for the first time in years this really feels like a day I want to celebrate." Erin answers "Even before Nadia's … There was always something else happening that just didn't make my birthday seem as important. And then once I grew up, I got so used to not celebrating it that I just didn't bother."

Jay looked at her curiously "So what changed this year?"

Erin looked between him and Ben "I guess I realised just how much I have in my life. There's a lot to be grateful for, and I want to celebrate it all. I want to be with all the people that love me and tell them how much I love them. I want today to be happy."

"well, then happy it shall be." Jay declared kissing her nose, Erin giggling at his actions.

…

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Jay asks as he knocked on the front door of Hank's house.

Erin rolls her eyes "For the millionth time, yes. I can't keep hiding it much more, I'm surprised no one's noticed the bump already."

Erin had officially 'popped'. Her stomach now had an evident protrusion to it; one which she had, so far, managed to hide with loose shirts and strategic jumpers. But she was in a good mood today, and she wanted to share that good feeling with her friends and family. Everyone would be here soon; it was the perfect time to do it.

The door swung open to reveal Justin Voight. He smiled widely at the family before him.

"Hey guys! Come on in," He said as they walked inside.

Justin and Jay embraced in a quick, one-arm hug. Ben hugged his uncle's leg before Jay let him walk off to find his grandpa Hank. Justin turned to Erin.

"Happy birthday big sis." He smiled wrapping his arms around Erin tightly and lifting her off the floor, spinning her around in his embrace.

"Whoa, Justin!" Erin laughed, before feeling her stomach turn "put me down!"

Erin stumbled out of his embrace, Jay rushing to her side to steady her "You okay?"

"I'm good." She breathed out "just some nausea."

"Nausea? You pregnant or something?" Justin laughs, Erin and Jay both looking up at him wide-eyed "wait, are you actually?"

Jay sighs looking at Erin "We were gonna surprise everyone today…"

"Oh man, I'm sorry!" Justin says, "That's awesome though, you guys are gonna have another baby!"

"Justin, keep your voice down," Erin chuckles "The last thing I need is Hank finding out I'm pregnant again from you."

"Shit. Right, sorry. I'll keep it to myself until you guys drop the bomb. But seriously, congratulations." He says hugging Erin "I'm so happy for you. Both of you."

Justin shakes Jay's hand, patting his shoulder "You better hope it's another boy, god knows I'm already freaking out about a girl."

Jay groans "Don't even. I'm going to go gray by the time I'm 40, Voight will go into an early grave at the thought of two granddaughters at the same time."

"He told Olive today he's been cleaning his gun collection, said he's giving me a few to take home in preparation." Justin shakes his head.

Olive was five-and-a-half months pregnant. She and Justin had just recently found out they were having a girl, which had sent both Justin and Voight into a spiral.

"Given the way you and Olive were during high school, he's got a right to be worried." Erin jokes.

"Oh please, you're the one who really scarred him. I wasn't the kid who was sneaking the head cheerleader's boyfriend into my bedroom at three am."

Jay turned to his girlfriend "What's this now?"

"That was one time!" Erin scowls "She was a bitch anyways. She's lucky I didn't beat the shit out of her."

"Easy tiger, settle down." Jay laughs "Let's go find Hank. It's been way too quiet in there; I better not find them watching serial killer documentaries again."

…

Erin couldn't remember the last time she felt this at peace. Honestly, she's not sure if she ever had. But watching her friends and family all chat and laugh together while Ben and Daniel ran around the room playing with each other, was about as close to perfect as Erin thought a person could reach. She could practically see the love glowing within the room, and she felt at ease.

"You havin' a good birthday?" She jumped at Hank's voice behind her, turning to face him.

"So far so good. Thank you for having everyone over."

Hank smiled kindly "Of course kid, it's your birthday. I'm just glad you're finally letting us celebrate it properly."

Erin shrugs in response "I guess I just finally realised the importance of celebrating the good things in life. Life's too short, you know?"

Hank wrapped his arm around Erin's shoulder, spying the photo of him and Camille framed on the wall as he pulled her into his side "Yeah, I do."

Ben ran up to the two of them, leaning against Erin and wrapping his little arms around her legs.

"Mama! Oli got baby!" he said excitedly.

Erin smiled down at him "Yeah Ben, Aunty Olive's got a baby in her belly."

Ben's hands reached up to her stomach, pawing at the little bump as Erin's panicked eyes looked to Jay "baby!"

Hank chuckled and kneeled down to his grandson, not understanding what he was getting at "Yeah bud, Daniel's gonna have a little sister. You're gonna get another cousin, how cool is that?"

Ben looked at his grandpa in frustration, before reaching for Erin again "Mama got baby!"

The room went quiet in a split second, everyone looking at Erin. Jay walked over to stand by her side, wrapping his arms around her waist supportively.

"Is this true?" Hank said quietly, eyes shining.

"We wanted to tell you first before we told everyone, but I guess Ben had other plans." Erin jokes softly nodding at him.

Hank pulls Erin and Jay in for a hug "Congratulations."

"I'm sorry you found out like this …" Jay starts, but Hank shakes his head.

"Are you kidding me? This is the best news. Wow, two grandkids in the span of a few months. I might have to start looking into retirement." He chuckles picking Ben up "You're gonna be a big brother!"

Ben giggles excitedly and nods at his grandfather, not entirely understanding the conversation but enjoying the attention, nonetheless.

"This is good news, truly. I know I gave you both a hard go the last time, but you are the best parents to Ben. This baby's going to be just as lucky to have you two."

Erin felt tears prick her eyes, pulling Hank in for another hug "Thank you. This baby's going to be so lucky to have you, too."

They held one another for a few minutes, before Jay tapped her shoulder. Erin turned to look at him, her partner nodding his head towards the rest of their guests watching them confusedly.

"You want to do the honours? I know how much you've been dying to tell everyone."

Jay's eyes lit up "Really?" he asks, practically bouncing on the spot.

Erin grins up at him "Yeah, Tell 'em."

"We're pregnant!" Jay shouts, confirming the news.

"I knew it!" Kim exclaims slapping her husband's shoulder excitedly "You owe me a weekend at the B&B, Adam!"

It had quickly reached the evening. The party was slowly winding down. Most of the guests had left, Justin and Olive had gone to bed and it was just a few of the Intelligence team left helping them clean up.

Erin was under strict orders to stay seated at the breakfast bar while Hank did the dishes. They had all agreed that she was not allowed to do any cleaning up on her birthday; so she sat with Hank in the kitchen, answering all his questions about her pregnancy thus far.

"Hey Sarge," Jay pokes his head in from the living room "Mind if I steal my girl?"

Voight doesn't look up from his task "If you must, Halstead."

Jay grinned mischievously, taking Erin's hand and pulling her along with him as he heads out the front door.

"Jay, what's going on?" Erin asks, curious.

"You'll see." He simply said, opening the car door for her to get in before he jumped into the driver's side and pulled out into the night-time traffic.

…

"Okay seriously? What are we doing here, it's already dark!" Erin asks impatiently.

Jay smiles at her "I just wanted to take a walk with you. Is that so bad?"

Erin look unsure "you drove all the way to Millennium Park just to take a walk with me? I don't buy it. Spill Halstead."

Jay takes her hand in his, beginning to walk down around "Do you remember the first time we came here as a family?"

"Yeah, Ben was four months old." Erin answers, wondering where he's going with this.

"You were so worried about him catching a cold, I think he was wearing like twelve layers that day," Jay chuckled "But I took him from you and let him sleep on my chest, and you finally calmed down. And then you lay your head on my stomach, resting just under him and you held my hand while you drifted off."

Erin gave him a small smile "I knew he was safe. I knew you would keep us safe."

"I remember thinking how right it all felt. You and me. The three of us … it was like finding the missing piece of the puzzle, you know? That was the moment I knew; that I wanted this forever, our life together. I never wanted that it to end. The feeling I got when you held my hand that day."

He stops walking, gently tugging on Erin's hand so she stops and turns to face him.

"Why are you telling me this, Jay?" She asks.

"Because Nadia said that when I did this, I had to take you to the place where I first knew." Jay whispers.

Erin frowns "I don't understand … Knew what? What does this have to do with Nadia?"

"I promised her that I would do it on your birthday. That I would tell you about the moment I first knew, without a shadow of doubt, that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you."

Erin's eyes went wide as it all clicked into place. Jay bent down on one knee, and she felt her heart begin to race.

"I would've made you a Halstead a long time ago if I had my way. But I made an agreement with someone that there was a specific way, and date, that I was to propose to you on."

"It was Nadia." Erin whispered tearfully "She's the one you made the agreement with?"

"Yeah." Jay smiled, tears filling his eyes as well.

"Okay, sign it quick before she comes in!" Nadia urges "I can't believe she decided to bring Ben in to visit, today of all days."

Jay shakes his head in amusement at the young woman "I'm telling you. She hates surprises. Especially surprise parties."

"Well she'll just have to suck it up because I have been planning this for months now and there is no way I am letting her sour attitude spoil it!" Nadia quips, reading the card "Seriously? That's it?"

"What? No one else wrote that much."

"Way to show your love dude." Nadia jokes putting the card inside the envelope.

"She's my partner, Nadia. And the mother of my child. That's it." Jay says adamantly.

"Oh, come on. You were practically living with us for the last four months of her pregnancy, you think I didn't see the way you act with her?"

Jay looks away "I don't know what you're on about."

"You and Erin, man … you're the same way." She says shaking her head "Can you honestly tell me you don't see a future with her? That you couldn't fall in love with her?"

"It's complicated, okay? Voight has rules. Rules that we agreed to obey." Jay sighs.

"It's not like he doesn't already know you two are getting freaky with each other."

Jay looks at her wide-eyed "How did you know?"

Nadia laughs at that "Dude, I lived with you guys, remember? You only finished moving Erin's stuff into your place like a month ago. I've come home quite a few times in the last month while you guys were … you know."

"Shit. I'm so sorry, we didn't realise-"

"Shut up, Jay. It's fine. I'm happy for you guys, really. It's about damn time." Nadia smiled "So, when's the wedding?"

Jay choked at the question, coughing loudly "Uh, we're barely dating as it is, you need to slow your roll Nads."

"You know it's gonna happen eventually. You guys are too perfect for each other to end up with other people, plus you got a kid tying you together for life." Nadia shrugs as if what she's saying is the most logical thing "Oh! You should propose on her birthday, that would be so cute!"

"Erin hates her birthday." Jay frowns at her.

"All the more reason to do it. She's had so many crappy memories surrounding her birthday, you can be the one to give her the best memory of all." Nadia says wistfully.

"I don't know about that …"

"And you should make sure you do it someplace really romantic. But not the cheesy romantic, she'll hate that. No, you got to do it somewhere special to the both of you. Somewhere that holds significance, like the place you were when you realised you wanted to spend the rest of your life with her. Or when you first realised you were in lo-"

"Dude, you gotta breathe." Jay says, interrupting her ramble "And slow way, way down."

Nadia smiled sheepishly "Sorry, I got a bit too excited. But, can't you see it? It would be perfect."

"It's sweet how much you care Nadia, really. But we're just not there." Jay placates "I promise you; if, one day, we get there then I will take onboard everything you've said. Okay?"

"That's all I ask." Nadia says patting his shoulder before walking out of the locker-room "But you've gotta admit, Erin Halstead has a nice ring to it."

"I know how much she meant to you. I thought it would be nice to include her in this moment." Jay laughs softly.

He pulls out the ring from the pocket of his jacket, holding it up towards his partner. Erin takes in a sharp breath.

"Your mum's ring." She whispers, stunned.

Jay had shown her photographs before of Kathleen wearing it, and he had told her one night how upset he had been to learn that his father had taken it with him when he had left. How long had ago had he gotten the ring back?

"Erin," Jay begins, taking her left hand in his "I know our journey hasn't been the easiest. We kind of started this whole thing completely backwards, and we never really got a fair chance to just have a normal relationship. But I wouldn't change a thing; because all the struggles, the fights and the hardships … it made us who we are. And I love who we are."

Erin used her free hand to wipe the tears from her eyes, leaning down to wipe his too, making Jay smile.

"I love the person you are. The way you support me, and care for Ben and I. You love wholeheartedly, unconditionally, irrevocably. You're my partner, in every sense of the word. And I feel so goddamn lucky to know that you love me, that you choose me. I want us to choose each other, every day for the rest of our lives."

"I love you Jay, but if you don't hurry up and ask me already, I'm gonna lose it." Erin murmurs, trying hopelessly to keep her tears at bay.

"Erin Lindsay, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

"Yes." She cries, pulling Jay up to his feet and hugging him tightly.

Jay lifts her up, kissing her as he holds her in his arms. Erin can feel his smile against her lips and her heart soars.

"I can't believe you did all this." Erin says.

"Honestly, I was worried. I didn't know how you'd be feeling today." Jay says nervously "I hope this was okay."

"Are you kidding me? Baby this was perfect," Erin says in awe "I don't need a fancy flash-mob proposal, or dinner in a fancy restaurant. This is all I want; me and you. That's all I need."

"Well, me and you and Nadia." Jay smiles "I know how excited she would've been for this.' I had been trying to figure out how to propose for months, and when we were packing everything up for the move, I found the birthday card she had gotten for you last year … it just felt right. She wanted me to take the painful memories you had of your birthday and give you a happy one."

"You most definitely did. I've never been so happy. I love you so much."

It meant so much to her that Jay had included Nadia in this moment. That he took to heart the promise he had made her, even though it probably hadn't been that serious in the moment. He knew it would make the night all the more special to her, and it did.

She loved this man more than she ever thought she could love another person. He had brought out a side of her that she had buried for so long. He made her happy, and carefree. He made her feel safe.

"We should probably head back soon, everyone said they're waiting around at the house until we get back and tell them how it went."

Jay took her hand in his and Erin caught sight of her engagement ring, smiling up at her fiancée before pulling him in for a kiss once more. Jay smiled as they began to walk back to the car. Erin couldn't wait to start the rest of their lives together.

And she would carry Nadia in her heart through it all.

~ The End ~

A/N: so originally, I had planned for this epilogue to end with Erin visiting Nadia's grave. But I know who much a lot of you wanted to see the proposal, so I hope this worked well.

I really wanted to incorporate Nadia into these big moments, since this story was born because of her. And I wanted to reinforce how important she was to both Erin and Jay, so I hope you all liked it.

Thank you so much for all your support on this story! It has been a fun ride, and I'm so grateful to you all for reading and reviewing and supporting 'Another Broken Heart You've Left Behind'.

I will be posting new stories every day this week, so keep an eye out x

Maddie