Back to Chaos

C H A P T E R - F O U R

Kelly Severide had decided.

He would confront Renee Royce about the possibility of the baby not being his.

No matter the consequences, he wanted to know. Even if she packed up and headed back to Madrid to find the baby's father or if it was really his and she remained in Chicago. He wanted to know.

He knew something was wrong when Renee showed up at Firehouse 51. She hadn't done that since the two had been dating before everything with Alyssa.

At first, when Royce arrived at 51, he didn't try to seem so suspicious about her being there after the initial shock of her arriving. She talked with the other firefighters and helped Mills out in the kitchen. Obviously, there was some hostility between the woman and the other firefighters at 51 since it seemed as if she was trying to replace Alyssa Torres.

But once they could look past that thought, they were warmer towards her and didn't hate her presence in the building. It was also obvious that Shay hated the woman there more than anyone else. She wouldn't look at Renee, wouldn't acknowledge her presence in the room, and would stay out of any conversation she started or that was about her.

At first, Shay would leave the room anytime Renee walked in but after it seemed as if Renee was anywhere, the paramedic just began to ignore her. Everyone could tell that the blonde hated the pregnant woman - everyone felt it. But they did their best to ignore it in fear of what may happen if anyone actually acknowledged it.

The shift was normal besides the arrival of Renee Royce. She remained at the firehouse when they left for calls and took care of the resident Firehouse 51 dog, Pouch.

Truck 81, Squad 3, Engine 51. Ambulance 61, Multi-vehicle accident. Interstate 90 at the Eisenhower Exit.

People set down their plates of food that they had been making and rushed out the door. Renee made way to bid good-bye to Kelly but he had run out the door before she was within three feet of him.

Traffic was stopped along the interstate with a tipped over half of a mobile home laying on its side blocking three of the lanes.

The Squad lieutenant jumped out and was called over by a man.

"Just before the house went over, I saw a motorcycle pass on the right." The man than pointed to the back of the tipped-over house where the back wheel of a motorcycle and the foot of the cyclist were showing from underneath.

While Truck worked to put out the fire in the sedan that was involved, Squad began to assess the victim, feeling his leg for a pulse.

"I feel his leg, just not a pulse," Severide says before turning to order the Squad firefighters. "All right, give me some cribbing and airbags, we need to stabilize this home."

There was a shout from what seemed to be inside the home causing the man to grab his radio.

"Otis, Mouch, grab me a ladder, there's someone else in side."

Otis responded as Squad brought over the cribbing and the airbags and began to lift up the back of the home. The ladder was positioned against the house and he began to climb up the side of it.

The front door was facing the sky, allowing the man to open it and look in. Peering down, he found the torso and face of the motorcyclist who was trapped under the home.

"I found the victim, send me up a line!" Kelly calls.

He attached the line to his belt and then lowered himself into the house so he could analyze the bikers' injuries. He explained the condition to Boden before ordering more equipment. He used a saw to cut a piece of the cupboard so he would have more room only to find another victim underneath it.

Calling over his radio, the lieutenant ordered for the airbags to be raised to extract the two.

He got the confirmation that the airbags were up and that they could extract the first victim. The second victim was DOA.

When they returned to Firehouse 51, there were cookies baked for them and sitting on the counter. That made Kelly suspicious once more. Yes, there were times when he got home and dinner was waiting for him but that was normally after he had gotten upset with her over something she did. But none of the other firefighters seemed to worry about the fact that fresh cookies were sitting out for them or that Renee was nowhere to be found.

But Severide decided that maybe she was just repaying them for being so welcoming of her when she got there. He headed to his office to fill out the report from the car crash they had just been at.

He hadn't filled out more than half of the report before there was a sharp rap on his office door before it was opened by none other than Renee Royce.

"So," she drags out with a large smile. She was holding a bag and he figured she had gone shopping for clothes for the baby. "My mom is a huge shopaholic you know and she is a little too excited about being a grandmother. And look how cute this is!"

She set the bag on his cot and then pulled out a onesie - a firefighter onesie.

Kelly remembered the appointment when they found out the baby was a boy. There had been a tang in his heart - excitement - about having a baby boy. But then he was reminded of the possibility that it wasn't his. But part of him wanted to raise the baby boy after he imagined everything they could do - he could teach him to play football, he could bring him along for ride-alongs in the Squad rig. He wanted to do everything for the boy that his dad didn't do for him.

He couldn't stop the small smile from crossing his face at the sight of the firefighter onesie. He could imagine bringing the boy to the Firehouse wearing that and seeing everyone's reaction to it. He knew the baby was due around the middle of April which would mean plenty of time for the baby to be able to grow into the outfit. He also knew that that meant he needed to figure out if it was his sooner or later so if she wanted to leave, she wasn't taking a newborn with her.

But Kelly looked away from the outfit as the smile fell off his face.

"Kelly," Renee says, setting the outfit down. He turned to look at her, knowing that she knew something was wrong. "What's going on with you?"

He stood up and sat down on the bed in front of her. He knew it was now or it would have to be after they settled with the baby.

"When you left for Spain, we promised to stay in touch but that we weren't exclusive. I saw Alyssa and ... is there any chance that this baby -"

He paused for a moment, hoping that he wouldn't have to finish his sentence. But before he could even try to continue, a slap was delivered to his cheek, causing him to flinch. His reaction gave Renee enough time to grab the shopping bag and exit the office.

The man had been afraid that that would've been her reaction. Severide knew that she would get upset over the accusation especially since she had put so much work into trying to make them a perfect little family.

Severide sighed before standing up from the bed and finishing his report.

He was nervous to head home. Flashbacks of heading back to his apartment the night that Alyssa left crossed his mind.

When he entered their bedroom, he found ... Renee packing a suitcase.

He knew he would find her like this.

"What are you doing?" he asks, standing on the opposite side of the bed than her. He knew the answer - the baby wasn't his so she was leaving.

"I went and got a test done, that's why I've been gone," she answers as she crosses the room to pick up more of her belongings. "I had a one-night stand with a guy in Spain. I thought it would help me get over you especially after I called the apartment to listen to Shay tell me you'd moved on with Alyssa. It didn't."

She stopped packing as tears fell before she finally made eye contact with him for the first time since he'd brought up the topic of the baby not being his.

"You were right," Renee states. "It's not yours. I know how crazy it sounds but I wasn't lying to you. I convinced myself that it was yours - ours. Kelly, you'll make a great father someday. And I am sorry for getting in the way of you and Alyssa - she really does seem wonderful. It was obvious that you loved her. And the two of you will have amazing children once she gets back."

The woman offered him a smile before leaving the bedroom. He remained stationary as he heard the front door close.

'the two of you will have amazing children once she gets back'.

When would that be? Everyone kept mentioning that she would be back but there was never a date for it.

He felt lonelier now than ever before. Renee had filled whatever hole Alyssa had left but now that both of them were gone, there wasn't much that he could do anymore.

~

Short update but that is it for Renee Royce which is why it is in one chapter!

Thank you guys for your patience! Next chapters are already planned out so hopefully less of a delay between them!