Why is Jay so close to Al?
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Nobody knew much about Jay Halstead; he was the silent IT Tech that worked in the Intelligence Unit. They knew he had served in the military from the age of 16, until he was discharged at age 24; he had joined the unit when he was 25, and being the youngest everyone was extremely protective of him.
Alvin Olinksky was the reason Jay Halstead got theough coming home from the Military; the older man was his adoptive father. He had been adopted when he was 10 years old; along with his brother Will who had been 15. Their mother had died four years prior, and their father cmbecame abusive.
Jay had been found with cuts, bruises and welts all over his body; old broken bones, new broken bones, torn ligaments, scars and clear signs kf sexual abuse. Will, had no injuries at all, he was his fathers golden child, but he had tried everything to get the younger safe and away. He had been the one to report his dad.
Jay had refused to let anyone touch him; crying out and curling in a ball in the furthest corner, until Alvin walked in. The older man had managed to get Jay onto the bed, and held him softly while the doctors and nurses treated his many injuries.
Now, at 25 he worked alongside his father but had never uttered a word about what happened through that time period. Even in during his time in the military he had never let a single word pass his lips about it. He didn't want people to think he was weak, but mostly he had forced his brain to push those memories into a locked box.
"Jay, we need to get going bud, busy day today" Alvin spoke as he walked into the kitchen
"Yea, coming" Jay replied, hands reaching for his phone and jacket
"Will says you went to therapy again yesterday" Alvin said softly
"Yea, don't like it" Jay admitted, opening the car door and getting in
"I know bud, but it's going to help the nightmares" Alvin smiled, reversing out of the driveway
"They want me on medication" Jay sighed, watching the world pass by
"And you're not wanting that?" Alvin asked softly
"No, makes me feel funny" Jay muttered, bringing his phone out of his pocket when it pinged
"Well, you know I'll support you in whatever decision you make" Alvin smiled
"I'm gonna throttle Adam, he's locked himself out his computer again" Jay groaned, throwing his head back as Alvin laughed
"He is pretty useless at technology" Alvin chuckled
Jay only sighed, unbuckling his seatbelt as they pulled into the parking lot of the 21st district; Alvin smiling as he saw Hank Voight walk into the building, the elder Sergeant not noticing him.
"When you going to admit you like him dad?" Jay chuckled, before getting out of the car leaving Alvin blushing like a teenage boy
"Jaycob Halstead, I'll have you know that Hank and I's relationship is purely professional" Alvin said, hurrying after his adopted son
"Sure, and I'm straight" Jay laughed
Nobody in the district was aware that Alvin was Jay's father, and the pair wanted it to stay that way until they were ready; even if it had been past 10 years. Jay was private about his family life and upbringing, only Alvin knew the full extent of what the youngest Halstead had been through.
"Adam, I swear to God, I'll take your computer away if you lock it one more time" Jay spoke as he walked into the Bull Pen
"I'm sorry man, I'm just not good at remembering the password" Adam sighed, allowing Jay into his seat so he could reset it
"It's your wifes name and date you got married, how do you forget it?" Jay exclaimed, standing up and making his way to his own desk
The team all laughed, before settling down to start on their next case; one which had Alvin discreetly looking at Jay. It was a child trafficking case; anything to do with abused kids always had a negative effect on Jay and his already vulnerable mental health.
"Ok, Jay I need you to go through the footage from the scene, each child has been videoed and we need to aomehow match them to the missing persons photo" Hank ordered, not noticinb how tense the yound tech had become
"Yes sir" Jay all but whispered, his hands already trembling at the amount of videos he had to go through
Alvin could only watch as each video was watched, his son got smaller and smaller, the trembling had become quite noticeable but a soft whimper brought everyones attention towards the younger man.
Hailey, having been the closest went to touch Jays shoulder and as she did he flinched, letting out a sob as he did. Everyone was now concerned for the well being of Jay, but he only uttered one single word.
"Dad" the younger man whimpered, eyes frantic
"I'm here buddy, you're ok, you're safe here" Alvin soothed softlt, pushing past the team and crouching by his trembling son
"Dad, need to go, he's here" Jay cried, reaching out for Alvins hands
"No, he isn't babe, he's in prison, has been for 15 years" Alvin continued, taking Jays hands in his
"You promise?" Jay asked, suddenly sounding like the 10 year old that Alvin had met all those years ago
"Yea buddy, you live with me now, remember, Alvin and you're big brother Will" Alvin soothed, shushing the others when they tried to speak
"I'm safe, and so is Will" Jay spoke softly, his eyes slowly opening as he took in the room he was in
"Yea buddy, you're safe and you're currently at work" Alvin explained
"Want to go home" Jay admitted, looking at his father with tears still present in his eyes
"I think that would be a good idea" Alvin smiled, standing up and bringing Jay into his arms for a tight hug
Jay only nodded, staying silent as he breathed in his fathers calming aftershave; the team just stood bewildered at the fact that they had missed out on the fact that Jay had been adopted by none other than Alvin Olinksky. It was Hank who broke the silence first; he told the others to go downstairs so that he could talk to Jay and Alvin alone without an audience.
"I'll take you both home" Hank spoke, smiling softly at Jay whi only hid his face in Alvins chest
"Thank you" Alvin smiled, tensing as he felt Hank come over and hug him
"You've done a good thing in bringing up that kid, I've seen his file" was all Hank said before he walked away to his office to get the keys for his truck
