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Casey is still a little bit surprised that after years of thinking that he and Severide were together that everyone had been surprised at the picnic last week. 

Maybe they just thought it was a funny joke?  Maybe they figured that it was never actually going to happen, and they were just weird.  Something to mock and tease them about?  Maybe they didn’t actually think they were dating because… because they’re two men? 

He has no idea, but everyone was surprised… which means, others – as in others in charge at the CFD could also not know.  Which means… they might need to make some announcements.

Nothing has changed – exactly – at least not that Casey thinks, but maybe they should do the thing properly and make sure that all of the lieutenants at 51 are comfortable with him as Captain in charge of Severide, his boyfriend.  It’s not just Boden – who they haven’t talked to about it – that he’d need approval from, but if his house feels like he might be biased or favor Severide (like Herrmann thought of him during the Dawson thing) than he needs to be aware of potential issues or make official changes.

Technically, the rules stated that they couldn’t be at the same house unless the other lieutenants and Boden agreed, and they could prove that they could do the job without problems.  But he could go back to lieutenant and then back to where they started with different shifts if it was an issue.

He hopes not – he likes being Captain.  Not more than being with Severide, though.

He hasn’t waited this long to finally be with him just to give him up now, not when he already has a ring burning a hole in his pocket and the family that he’s always wanted.

It helps that Severide had been a step ahead, thinking about showing them off as a duo at the Fireman’s gala, but Casey had looked into the rules just to be sure.  He thought it was absolutely no-go, but it turns out there are exceptions.  There were two other fireman couples in the CFD that served together in the same house and had petitioned to keep serving together.  Though they were at the same level, so this might be a little harder for him, but those couples had petitioned their chief and other lieutenants and with their approval could work together.  He knows that if he doesn’t get approval from the other lieutenants than he could get into some serious trouble, but he’s hoping that they’ll be understanding and supportive.

So, he’s off to first watch to talk to Donaldson and Davidson, already planning to stay after second watch to talk to Stevenson and Henderson.  He assumes that Herrmann is okay with it given all of his teasing over the years and if not, Casey knows from experience that he’d go to Boden and the only reason Casey wasn’t written up for Dawson was because Boden felt like they owed Dawson for staying after Shay’s death as paramedic.  That and he and Herrmann agreed Herrmann would train her. 

Not that it matters now.

He’s sure that Herrmann wouldn’t make a stink.  He’s sure Didrikson would have considering the whole complaint against Severide that involved a lot of things that were on both Casey and Severide and the fact that he was the only one of the lieutenants at 51 to state uncertainty about Casey’s promotion (largely due to the co-parenting with Severide), but he’s gone now. 

So, he’s sure it’s going to be just fine.

Perfectly fine. 

“You okay?” Severide asks from the doorway of their bedroom because he’s had his bag over his shoulder but hasn’t left his spot at the counter with his to-go coffee. 

His boyfriend is standing there in just some loose shorts, looking very much like he wants to drag Casey back to bed since the boys are at their friends’ houses.  “Yeah, of course.”

“Then, why have you been standing there looking very much like you’d rather I drag you back to bed with me?”

“I think that’s you projecting,” Casey teases, despite the truth behind his words.  He would rather go back to bed with Severide.

Severide laughs.  “Come on, Case.”

“I’m just a little nervous.  I thought – I thought everyone knew and I wouldn’t have to make an announcement, and then, I thought about the winter gala and what you were saying –”

“We’ve proved for years that our co-parent relationship hasn’t gotten in the way and for the last six months, that our romantic relationship hasn’t either.  If they protest, just point that out,” Severide says, plainly.  As if it’s just that easy.

“They might not agree.”

“Then, we’ll deal with it – we’ll find a way, but I like to think that you were thinking ahead being friends with the other watches’ lieutenants and I think that Boden would fight for us.  He usually does – we’re definitely his favorites.”

“True.”

“It’s going to be fine, and either way, I’ll be waiting at home for you to have some fun.”

He wiggles his eyebrows suggestively, and Casey laughs.

The promise does make him feel a little bit better.  “Thanks, Sev.”

He gives him a kiss and says, “Good luck.”

***

Casey doesn’t just plan to talk to Donaldson and Davidson on watch.   He tries to check in with their teams as well.  Make sure that they’re happy with their lieutenants and don’t have any concerns – he’s learned the hard way over the years that being present is the best way to actually get people to talk about potential issues.  It’s part of Boden’s advice when he decided to become Captain because there’s been complaints about Boden’s somewhat favoritism of 51’s second watch. 

So, he does some paperwork in the common room as he chats with the guys on watch until the teams decide to go play ping-pong except for Donaldson and Davidson, leaving the three of them alone in the common room.

“So, what brings you by, Casey?” Davidson asks, the second they’re alone. 

“I do like to check in –”

“Yeah, but you seem nervous,” Donaldson offers.  “Everything okay with the boys?”

“Yeah, no, they’re great.  Everything’s great.”

“So, what’s wrong?”

It’s clear that they both are suspecting that something’s up, so he just needs to push through and tell them what he came here for.

“Nothing’s … wrong, exactly.”

“And yet…”

Casey takes a breath and says, “Here’s the thing… uh, for years people have teased that Severide and I are together – married, dating, what-have-you – because of the whole co-parenting thing and what most of second watch has claimed as weird behavior – and that wasn’t true… before… and now, it is true.”

He pauses in his prepared speech to see how they are taking it. 

Neither of them looks surprised.  Donaldson’s green eyes are soft, his smile light, assuring.  Davidson’s brown eyes are bright and twinkling.  Both look as if they’ve been expecting this and are quite supportive, but they don’t say anything, so he continues.

“And, well, even though I was close to Severide before, obviously being friends and co-parents didn’t break any of the CFD’s fraternization rules within houses, dating one of lieutenants does break those rules, especially since I am Captain, but there is a loop hole that as long as we can prove that it doesn’t / hasn’t affected our jobs and the other lieutenants and the chief are okay with it – things don’t have to change.  But obviously, I do understand if it is an issue for –”

“Casey,” Donaldson interrupts.  “I don’t know about Stevenson and Henderson, but Davidson and I have thought you two were always dating or at least, interested in each other for a while now.”

“Yeah, and we thought that you two just weren’t ready to come out because firefighting isn’t exactly known as an open and welcoming profession – even if that’s changing, but we definitely thought you were together since that prank on second watch,” Davidson adds. 

“Before that really,” Donaldson offers.  “That summer you were on first watch with me, when he started bring the boys by to visit… the way he looked at you, sometimes – and Davidson joking about Severide’s pining for you on second watch…”

He and Davidson are giving him soft looks. 

“We figured that maybe something was going on – or at least, possible since that summer, but maybe you were in denial?  I’ve heard it’s hard to reconcile learning a part of yourself like that later in life, but eventually, you would’ve…” Davidson states, clearly understanding something about the journeys they’d both gone through. 

(He remembers vaguely that his brother had come out only three years ago – and now he gets why Davidson had told him about that).  

“So, the prank …we thought it was more of a test to see if you’d be accepted – hence, saying it was a prank because the rumors probably made it seem like you wouldn’t be, even though you would be, at least at 51.  Everyone loves you here, and you and boys have brought a side to Severide that most people like him, too.”

“Maybe even love him, but that’s iffy,” Donaldson teases.

Casey blinks. 

“No, no, it was a prank.  There was a level to it that I didn’t realize…” he pauses and coughs.  “You thought that then?  You – you thought the whole time… But that was before I became Captain.  You still wanted me to be Captain, even thinking that?”

“Well, yeah, we’d known you for years at that point – our kids have spent time together, we’ve been to each other’s houses – and frankly, we’d seen you and Severide as a pair that could handle the job together and despite my teasing about spoiling Severide all those years ago, you haven’t actually shown any favoritism,” Davidson states.  “I wasn’t sure that we were ever going to switch back, but once you said that Griffin was really for it, I thought – well, did anything really change from when you were on shift together before?  Not really.  You two have always been on the job together without an issue so…”

“Yeah, what he said,” Donaldson adds.  “You’d shown that you were capable of doing the job and making hard calls with him on the job and frankly, you didn’t have to be a couple to have this … fraternization issue to be an issue because just being co-parents and raising the boys together goes beyond best friendship – that’s a family.  It was already evident that he was always more than just another guy at the House.  You’ve always been close, but once you became co-parents… that already crossed the line and yet, you did just fine.  So, actually getting together … hasn’t really changed anything from the job perspective, has it?”

It was a good point. 

It was the same point Severide had made back in January.

Same point he made this morning.

“And honestly, the real test was your response to his demotion,” Davidson offers.  “Yeah, you defended him, but you also accepted it and didn’t give Didrikson or Patterson any trouble for it – aside from pointing out that Patterson was already on a bad foot when he was being just as exclusive as Severide and trying to force the team to spend time together off shift.”

“And honestly, I thought you did well with it.  Obviously, we weren’t on watch with you then, but Didrikson, despite reservations when Boden brought up the Captain thing, stated plainly that the concern seemed to be over-estimated.  And of course, we considered that it could be an issue because we both know if we were on watch with our wives, we wouldn’t be able to do it, but even Didrikson was impressed with you two and your professionalism.  That’s why we all agreed that it wasn’t an issue with you as co-parents if you became his Captain.”

“And it wouldn’t be an issue if and when you decided to come out,” Davidson adds, and waves a hand.  “Or get together, I guess, since you haven’t been together all this time.”

“Yeah, like I said – sometimes watching you two together, it certainly looked like more than friends co-parenting,” Donaldson says.  “I swear there was more than one time where he looked at you like you… hung the moon.”

“Heart eyes,” Davidson teases with a smile.  “I saw it a few times when you’d do something with the boys that just proved that you were born to be a dad.  The look in his eyes when you first visited second watch with the boys.  He saw you cooking with Griffin and just… melted for a second – covered, of course, by the teasing about his terrible pining.”

Casey hadn’t even caught that.  Although, he had caught onto Severide’s missing him, it’d been part of why he’d done that visit in the first place.

“And didn’t you tease him being jealous about you hanging out with me even off-watch that summer?" Donaldson asks.  “Even at the barbeque were teasing you both about just how … different you two were as a lieutenant pair to us.”

“Yeah, like just throwing yourselves on each other’s beds and posting polls on the board about pillow talk.”

“Not to mention sometimes wearing his sweatshirts.”

“That was an accident,” Casey tries to defend. 

They weren’t together then, but now, that he thinks about that summer, maybe there was something there – hadn’t Christie even asked if there was something he had to tell her when they’d been texting about the pillow talk poll?

Donaldson laughs.  “Yeah, sure, that’s why it kept happening off shift.”  He’s smiling and teasing, and says, “I think seeing you with the boys for him – it was like that moment when you fall in love with your spouse all over again because of great of a parent they are.  He kinda looked like he’d fallen in love just seeing you that way with the boys.”

“But we figured that second watch teased you both enough and it probably made you unsure about coming out and so, you just weren’t ready to come out, yet.  Maybe ever,” Davidson finishes.  “So, we just – let things be.”

Huh, he thinks.  He hadn’t even realized that the other lieutenants had thought – were concerned, then.  They put more thought into the potential issues than Casey had.

Then, again, they’ve been truly thinking about this a lot longer than Casey had.  Too oblivious for his own good.

Maybe they should’ve gotten together sooner or would have if he hadn’t been so afraid.  Not of this – not of the rules – but of the bigger issue of being in love with your best friend.

Admittedly, Casey’s concern had been more if Severide was into him and how the change would affect their family life because they’d been on the job together for so long that he knew he could work with him and handle things just fine.  He knew that it wouldn’t be an issue like it had been with Dawson.

“Boden never said that you were concerned that us co-parenting broke the rules.”

Davidson laughs.  “That’s because we never said anything, other than Didrikson’s first issues before it was decided that we would approve you as Captain if you passed the test, we’ve never exactly brought up issues with him.”

“He has… a favoritism issue that you don’t,” Donaldson states.  “At least not anymore.  Didrikson had originally expressed concerns because of –”

“Dawson, yeah.  That was a bad … bad call on my end, but Boden wanted to do right by her for staying after Shay died and I learned my lesson,” Casey admits.  “Well, until I completely forgot about the potential issue with Severide, but I think part of that was just – I don’t know, never been afraid to tell him when he’s fucking shit up… and I was more concerned that he didn’t share my interest and that would affect the boys…”

Davidson laughs.  “You’re kidding, right?  You didn’t think he was interested?”

“I – well –”

They both laugh because it’s clear that he can’t really explain why he didn’t realize that Severide shared his feelings.

Deciding to spare him the embarrassment, Donaldson offers, “Yeah, and we’ve all seen you two together at events and on watch, and that helps.”

“Honestly, Casey, we just figured – it’s working with or without you two out on the job, and we… assumed that you just kept it a secret not to stay together (although that helps), but because you weren’t ready to come out.  Which is your right.”

“I appreciate that,” Casey says, even though he hadn’t really thought of it as coming out as in – of the closet.  So many people had thought they were together that he hadn’t even considered that as a problem.  “To be honest, I wasn’t – we weren’t hiding or anything since we got together – I mean, I’m honestly surprised that second watch had no idea until the picnic.  We thought with all of the joking and assumptions that everyone knew, but at the picnic everyone seemed surprised, so I figured that I probably needed to get ahead of potential conflicts or issues.”

Donaldson smiles at him.  “There’s no issues here.  Keep doing what you’re doing, and I don’t think there will be an issue.”

Davidson nods along with him.  “And hey, we’re happy for you.”

“Thanks, guys.”

***

“So?” Severide asks as soon as he’s through the door, he’s sitting on the couch watching some car movie that he mutes the second he sees him. 

“So, apparently, it’s a non-issue.  They thought were together before I became captain – pretty much since the first summer we were co-parenting together – and thought if it wasn’t an issue that we were co-parents and on watch together then it wouldn’t be an issue now.”

He plops down next to Severide, and asks, “Did you know that they thought we just weren’t ready to come out?  That it was a coming out thing?  Not a fraternization rules thing?”

“Coming out as in… of the closet?” Severide questions, looking a little confused.  “Never really thought about it that way.  We weren’t in the closet.”

“They assumed we were,” Casey says, shrugging.  “I never really thought about it that way, but I guess – I mean, it does make sense to them.  To them – and maybe the rest of the world – we were living together, raising the boys, acting like a married couple and just… never said anything.  And everyone knew I wasn’t dating anyone, and you haven’t dated anyone since Anna, which I don’t even think they knew about, so…”

Severide hums.  “Yeah, that kind of makes sense.  Especially since there aren’t many men into other men in firefighting.”

“Exactly, so, I guess being in the closet does make sense, even if we didn’t think of it that way.  And I mean, we both did have to go through journeys to figure ourselves out.”

“Some of us slower than others,” Severide teases, pulling him into his side. 

He shifts so that they’re both laying together on the couch. 

“Shut up, you’re an asshole.”

“Come on, Case, I was practically flirting with you for two years and you didn’t notice.”

“I noticed,” Casey says, blushing.  “I just – I thought it was just normal you since you’ve always been a big flirt, and I didn’t want to ruin things in case I was wrong.”

Severide laughs.  “Clearly, I let my flirting game slip while I’ve been living with you if it wasn’t obvious.”

Casey rolls his eyes.  “You’re the worst, you know that?”

“And yet, you love me.”

“Unfortunately.”

He moves to kiss him and potentially start something before the boys get home, but unfortunately, he stayed at the firehouse a little too long because only a second after his lips connect with Severide’s, the door opens and he hears, “Oh, gross.”

They break apart and turn their heads to Griffin, who insisted that now that he was going into high school, he can totally get a ride with a friend or figure out the trains and buses to be able to go to his friends’ houses on his own.  They’d been uncertain about it, but they were both pretty much responsible for themselves at that age, so as long as he had a phone in case of potential issues, they were giving it a try.

He’d been doing pretty well so far this summer.

“Well, hello to you, too, kid.”

Griffin rolls his eyes and moves to the dining room table to work on the jigsaw puzzle he started while asking, “What’s for dinner?”

Casey hums as Severide’s phone rings, clearly, it’s Ben because his half of the conversation is basically that he’ll leave in a minute to come pick him up.

Slightly annoyed, Casey gets up as Severide says, “I’m going to get Ben.”

“Sounds good.  I’ll make burgers or something for dinner.”

Griffin cheers at that, while Severide says, “Sounds good,” and then, gives him a kiss and takes off. 

He’s a bit disappointed at the lack of alone time, but it’s his fault for raising the boys to be good about being on time with curfews and the like. 

***

The talk with Stevenson and Henderson was a lot less nerve wrecking since he knew from Davidson and Donaldson that they already thought that he and Severide were together or at least, very interested in each other, so it was more of a confirmation.  They had confirmed that they were and are okay as long as he continues to be the way he’s already been and until and unless that changes, it’s not a problem.

He'd gotten them, along with first watch, and Herrmann to sign something to that affect so that his meeting with Boden would go smoothly. 

Herrmann had been his last stop and laughed and said, “Jokes aside, it’s about damn time,” and signed it, happily.

“Chief?  Got a minute?” Casey asks, bracing himself.  He needs this to go well, Herrmann and Severide had both assured him it would, but… who ever knows for sure?

“Sure, Casey, come on in.”

Casey can admit to being a little nervous about talking to the Chief about this.  Largely because it hadn’t gone so well with Dawson, but it’s been … six years since then, and obviously, he and Severide are perfectly capable of working together since they’d been doing it for years – as best friends, co-parents and now, dating, but… will the Chief see that?

“What can I do for you?” Chief asks, looking concerned at Casey’s slight nerves when he sits.

“Well, I,” he pauses, re-thinking blurting out that he’s dating Severide. 

He should probably back up a bit because as far as he knows Boden hadn’t known or heard anything about him and Severide other than the often-said joke about them dating.

“Okay, here’s the thing – for years, Severide and I have been co-parenting, we’ve been a family and that hasn’t changed.  People have joked and teased us about practically being married – Herrmann has suggested that we act like a married couple pretty much every day since we took in the boys.  And we always said that we were just best friends that are raising a couple of boys together.”

“Okay…”

“And that was completely true.”

Boden blinks.  “Was true?  Past tense.”

Casey nods.  “Six-ish months ago, I kissed Severide and things changed.  Not with our ability to be a family and do our jobs, not with my ability to be his Captain, nor his ability to listen to and follow my orders, but with our personal lives.”

“You’re dating Severide?  Officially?”

“Yes,” Casey confirms. 

He’s not sure what Boden’s thinking because he’s handling it with a blank face, his thoughts not visible at all.  It makes him a bit more nervous about this – what if he’s hiding his feelings because he doesn’t approve? 

“I have reviewed the rules and since we have proven that we can work together as a unit without favoritism, there is a loophole in the fraternization rule –”

“Casey, considering the last time –”

That’s not a great start…

“This is different,” he insists because it is. 

He and Severide have always managed to keep their heads on straight at work.  It’d been hard, at first, his freakout at Halstead wanting to black tag Severide and the chaos with Rice had proved that, but the break of separate watches that summer had changed things. 

By the time that he’d returned to second watch, he and Severide had figured out how to make it work, and they’ve done well with it for years.  Since they got together on New Year’s, things haven’t changed, so he knows that it’s fine.  They can do this in a way that he and Dawson couldn’t.

“Severide and I have been a family that would’ve been impacted by working together all along – we were never just friends after we took in the boys, no matter what we fooled ourselves into thinking.  And we have had near-misses on the job since then and neither of us have lost our heads –”

“You’re his Captain.” 

Simple sentence.  Simple fact.  Simple problem.

He can see Boden’s objection at the power imbalance, and he gets it, but if it wasn’t an issue as co-parents with crushes on one another, it shouldn’t be an issue now.

“I’m aware, but unlike before, the fact that nothing has changed on the job since the new year started proves that it really doesn’t matter that we’re dating now,” Casey states, plainly. 

He can sense that Boden’s actually going to be the difficult one this time.  He should’ve realized that he couldn’t be that lucky that no one would push back on this.  He’s just surprised that it’s Boden, but maybe he shouldn’t be.

Not after Dawson.  Not after the troubles Boden’s had in recent years with CFD questioning his leadership. 

“I’ve still written him up for recklessness, given him crap, and he’s still listened.  I haven’t treated him any differently to Herrmann or the other lieutenants at 51 and there’s this.”

He hands him the document written up by Donaldson and signed by every lieutenant excluding Severide with a line for Boden’s signature. 

“I spoke to the other lieutenants when I realized that I would have to make a formal announcement after all.  Sev and I thought since everyone assumed for years that they knew better than we did, that we wouldn’t need to, but everyone was surprised at the picnic.  So, I spoke to the other lieutenants, who, frankly, thought that we were already together, but in the closet because of … just the lack of openness in our profession… and confessed that they had considered if it would be a problem before I was promoted.  And they decided it wasn’t.”

Boden looks down at the signatures and the document stating that they acknowledge the broken rule but are accepting it. 

“All you have to do is believe that Severide and I can continue to handle this and sign the document.  I will have it filed in the morning and deal with whatever questions I’m sure will come from above.”

Boden still doesn’t look sure, and before any more can be said, the alarm blares. 

“Let me think about it, Casey.”

Casey nods and takes off. 

Maybe Boden wasn’t the cheerleader that Severide thought he would be, either way, he guesses he’ll find out another time.

***

It takes more than a week – nearly two – in which Casey’s honestly on pins and needles, while Severide looks very much like he wants to go yell at Boden, but they both know that wouldn’t help before he gets his answer.  Casey knows it, Severide knows it, and they just have to wait.

He supposes that it’s a sign that Boden’s learned a lesson from Casey’s previous issue with Dawson.  On the other hand, it kind of pisses him off because nothing has changed in the last six months and he’s already proved that he could be his Captain and his boyfriend to the point that no one even noticed.

Boden knows that he and Severide have made things work for years and nothing has really changed now that they’re dating.  Their behavior hasn’t changed even with everyone on watch knowing.  It’s been exactly the same, even if people might read into it now.  Notice it more now.

He’s noticed that Boden’s been paying close attention to them.  Eyeing them on calls or when they’re in the common room or quarters together.  

It bugs him.

It bugs Severide, who has also noticed.

But tonight, they have a night to themselves.  The boys are both out with friends and they could go to Molly’s, but he’d rather just stay home and watch some stupid movie together. 

Or more accurately, not watch a stupid movie together since less than ten minutes into the movie, Severide shifts so that he’s got one leg between Casey’s legs and his lips on Casey’s neck with one hand in his hair and his other hand running down his bare chest. 

“Sev, you’re not even trying to watch the movie,” he teases.

Severide lifts his head to look him in the eyes.  “You really complaining?”

“Never,” Casey says before kissing him passionately. 

Severide’s hands wander down his chest to his belt but before he could undo it, the doorbell rings.

Severide groans.  “That cannot be the boys.”

Casey shifts and looks out the window, which they probably should’ve pulled the blinds on to see Boden.

“It’s Boden.”

It’s odd.  Boden doesn’t usually come by their place.  So, he’s not sure that it’s a good sign, but he shifts to sit up and throw on the nearest shirt (which naturally happens to be Severide’s) while Severide goes to answer the door.

“Chief.”

“Severide, Casey,” he greets as Severide moves to sit next to him and Boden takes a seat on the opposite edge of the couch. 

It’s a bit awkward as Boden takes them in and clearly notices what he was interrupting, so after a moment or two, Casey prompts, “What brings you by, Chief?”

His eyes slide from him to Severide and back, and Casey says, “Assuming this is about our chat a couple of weeks ago, you have to realize that no matter what he’s going to know the outcome.”

Boden coughs.  “Right.  Listen, I didn’t want to make the same mistake as with you and Dawson, and I wanted to do my due diligence to make sure that this was something that wouldn’t cause problems down the line.”

“It hasn’t yet, has it?” Severide asks, pointedly.

“Sev,” Casey says, quietly, because he gets it. 

He fucked up before – being involved with Dawson when she was his candidate had been a terrible idea and did neither of them any good.  At the end of it, they both got some heat for it since other Chiefs and Houses could tell something was different even after they broke up.  The only thing saving them from getting in trouble was Casey’s move to first watch over the following summer until Dawson ended up at Dispatch and on Ambo once she came back from maternity leave. 

“He makes a good point,” Boden admits.  “But I didn’t know that things had changed between the two of you – jokes aside, I honestly believed that it wasn’t something that would actually happen, especially after that prank when you both indicated there wasn’t anything there –”

“To be fair, we believed that.”

“You believed that,” Severide teases. 

Casey rolls his eyes at him.  “I was just –”

“Oblivious?”

“No.”

“Willfully blind?”

“No.”

“Determinedly sticking your head in the sand?”

“Not exactly.”

Although yes, that was certainly part of it, he looks at Severide, who is giving him that playfully amused look he has ever since Casey realized just how … silly he’d been to wait.  He should not be nearly forty and just now figuring himself out, even if Severide is looking at him like he’s just some adorable kitten or something.

He nearly forgets Boden’s there until he coughs.  “Well, I, uh, I never thought it was possible so I needed to make sure that previous issues would not arise with the two of you now dating and on watch together.  So, I’ve been watching –”

“We’ve noticed,” Casey states.  “Figured that might be the case, and honestly, I haven’t felt like anything changed between last year and this year.”

“I agree with you,” Boden states as he pulls something out of his pocket.  “Which is why I signed your document.  As long as nothing changes professionally, and from everything I’ve discussed with the other lieutenants – because I wanted to check in with them, too – especially after Didrikson’s complaint all those years ago, and they all said that once you decided to raise the boys together, technically, that should’ve broken the rule and you’ve been fine, so…”

Casey accepts the signed document with all of the lieutenants and chief’s signatures.  “Thanks, Chief.”

“You may still have some questions by the higher ups, but I think this will go a long way to keeping things as they are, and I reserve the right to make changes if it suddenly becomes an issue.”

“We understand and it won’t be a problem.”

“Good,” Boden says, standing.  “Then, I will leave you to your date night, but you might want to pull the blinds if you don’t want to give your neighbors a show.”

Casey laughs when Severide jokes, “Maybe we want to give the neighbors a show.”

Boden just shakes his head and as he goes to let himself out, he says, “And for the record, I’m happy for you both.”

Casey smiles.  “Thanks, Chief.”

Then, he gets up and locks the door behind him as Severide does, in fact, pull the blinds. 

“Well, Case, I think this means – we win.  We broke the rules and yet, nothing has to change,” Severide says, a brilliant smile on his face.

Casey grins, they’ve definitely won.  Nothing has to change, and life is good.  “Something to celebrate.”

“Hell yeah.”