#missthemalready

Hang in there, Brettonio fans! It’ll be okay. Just have faith and be patient. Anyway, here is a story, enjoy!

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Sylvie desperately wanted to stay for Gabby and Matt’s reception, stay until the entire thing was over, but she couldn’t stand to be in Molly’s when Antonio was. It wasn’t that she was mad at him, she wasn’t. She was in over her head, this was her fault. However, every time she glanced over at him, she saw him staring at her also.

She couldn’t help but think of how happy they were before Laura ruined everything. Damn her. Why couldn’t Antonio see how much this was killing her?

Yeah, she needed to get out of here, get away from him. Maybe soon they could be in the same room together, but right now it was too soon.

She picked up her purse and she stormed out of Molly’s, her breath getting stuck in her throat as hot tears poured down her cheeks. This hurt too much. She leaned against the wall as she tried to control her breathing.

“Pull it together, Sylvie.” She harshly whispered, feeling stupid. She didn’t care about crying at her apartment, but not here. Just as she was trying to composed herself, she heard the door opened, she quickly wiped the tears.

She didn’t think she would get caught as she was on the side of Molly’s, but this person was walking that way. “Oh shit!” Matt jumped back, seeing Sylvie. “What are---” noticing the puffy of her eyes and the red on her nose, his face grew full of concerned. “Are you okay?” He questioned.

“Oh yeah.” She said, forcing a smile on her face. “Can you just tell Gabby I’ll see you later?”

“Sure.” He said, nodding his head. He watched as she turned to walked away and he grabbed her arm slightly. “Hey, for what’s it worth, you’ll be okay. You have a family behind you.”

“Thank you.” She took out her keys and headed towards her car. She appreciated Matt being sweet, but she was alone. Everyone loved Antonio and considered him to be family too, so they couldn’t very well be objective.

As soon as she made it to her apartment and walked inside, something felt different. Maybe it was her, but this didn’t feel like her home anymore. If she was being honest with herself, Chicago didn’t feel like her home anymore. She moved from Indiana to have a better happier life, and all Chicago gave her was pain. Pain that she never deserved.

She walked into her bedroom and she took off her jacket and boots as she laid in bed. For what felt like 2 hours, she let the tears out. She must have been in her own whole while crying because before she knew it, she heard Gabby’s voice. “Sylvie, we’re here.”

Sylvie looked up when Gabby said ‘we.’ She wasn’t sure why she thought she would bring Matt, but sometimes the girl didn’t think. But luckily it was Stella.

She wiped the tears away, shaking her head. “I’m fine, guys. Really.”

“Does she look fine to you, Gabby?” Stella questioned.

“No, not at all.” Gabby said as they walked over to Sylvie and wrapped her in a hug.

“Guys!” She exclaimed. “I can’t breathe.” She complained as they were wrapped in a hug like a sandwich.

“Our love is suffocating you, huh?” Stella said teasingly.

Sylvie laughed, shaking her head. “You’re so silly.”

Gabby looked at Sylvie with a sad look on her face. “Are you okay, sweetie?”

Sylvie sighed as she stood up from the bed and started pacing. “Not right now, I will be. I don’t know, maybe I should have told him that I didn’t want to take a break, that he was wrong. But was he?” She was rambling and she knew she was.

Stella stood up and grabbed her arm to stop her from pacing. “Only time can tell, sweetie. Maybe the break will be good for you guys.”

“We were just so good together.” She groaned.

“Oh yeah?” Stella questioned. “The sex, huh?”

Sylvie’s eyes widened and she smacked Stella on the arm. “No!” She laughed. “I just mean the relationship in general.”

“Okay, let’s talk about something else before Stella questions the sex though. Remember guys, this is my brother.” Gabby looked over at Sylvie. “So, why didn’t you tell me about this before you came home crying to yourself?” She questioned.

“Because this is your night, Gabby. With the crap you have been dealing with, you deserve a night of happiness. You don’t need my drama. Besides, this is your brother, you can’t be objective.” She pointed out.

“I won’t say ‘let’s make him pay’ or anything like that. Especially because he’s hurting also. But I will say this, a break is just that---a break. Me and Matt had our fair share of breaks, and look at us now.”

Although that should have made Sylvie happy, she wasn’t. Gabby and Matt had a good reason to take a break, her and Antonio did but also didn’t.

“Do you think he wanted the break to see if he still loves Laura?” She questioned. “Or if he wants to go back to her?” She added, sadly.

Gabby couldn’t help but laughed. “I know I said it might have been too soon, but at the same time, Antonio would never go back to Laura. Even if you and Antonio weren’t together for a few months, he still wouldn’t consider it. She made his life a living hell---she’s still making his life a living hell.”

“I know.” She sighed.

Stella and Gabby stayed for another hour, just trying to comfort Sylvie the best way they could.

She could barely sleep that night, she kept waking up from a deep sleep, crying. She dealt with heartbreaks her life thus far, but this one hurt her the most.

It was around 6 in the morning and she knew she wouldn’t make it to work. Then her thoughts went back to what she was thinking last night. Chicago may make everyone else happy, and at one point in time, it was what she needed. But what she really needed right now was to visit back home. She called Chief Boden and asked to use some of her personal days, he agreed, asking her if everything was okay. She lied and said yes and then hung up the phone.

As she was packing, she knew in her heart that she wasn’t returning to Chicago, she couldn’t. She wanted so badly to say goodbye to Gabby but she couldn’t. Gabby wouldn’t let her go.

Once she was done packing up her belongings, she looked around her apartment and she sighed. She promised herself the next place she made home, she wouldn’t leave over another man, but yet here she was, leaving because of Antonio Dawson. Antonio freakin’ Dawson.

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Gabby was a little mad at Sylvie, as much as she knew she needed a break, she didn’t want a temporary partner, she wanted her partner.

As soon as her shift was over, she wanted to go home and sleep but first she wanted to check in on Sylvie. She had been calling her all shift and nothing yet, she was getting a little worried about her.

“Hey. I’ve been calling and texting Sylvie all day, but haven’t heard anything. I’m worried about her. Can you drop me off at her apartment?” Gabby asked Matt.

“You want me to come in with you?” He asked.

Gabby shook her head. “No, I think she just needs me.” She gave him a kiss as soon as he pulled up outside of Sylvie’s apartment. “I’ll see you soon.”

She stepped out of his truck and walked inside Sylvie’s apartment building. She wondered if she and Antonio made up yet, but figured if they did, she would have told her by now. She walked up to her door and she knocked gently. “Sylvie?” She called out. “Are you okay? For your sake, you better not be because I’m going to kick your ass for ditching me.”

When a few minutes went by and no answer, she started getting worried. She tried to open her door but it was locked. Where the hell was she? Then again it was pretty early. Duh, Sylvie was sleeping, that had to be it. But she couldn’t leave without checking on her.

She took out her keys and looked for Sylvie’s key. She hoped she was okay, but if she wasn’t, her brother was dead. So dead. She opened her door and she looked around. It was quiet, too quiet.

She walked around the apartment, calling out for Sylvie. “Sylvie?” Please, oh please, don’t let Antonio be in the bedroom with her. She would be happy they were back together, but it was a sight she was sure she would never recover from.

She pushed her bedroom door open further, expecting to see Sylvie laying in her bed. When she saw that her bed was still made and not slept in, she started to panic. Where was she? Sylvie wasn’t the type to stay out all night, she never could when they were hanging out, so it was doubtful she was out all night now.

Her thoughts went to Antonio, maybe she was there. She was tempted to call him but she was stopped in her tracks when her eyes moved over to her closet. She walked over to her closet, opening the door wider, noticing that all of her clothes were gone. No, this can’t be right. Sylvie wouldn’t leave without saying anything to her. She walked over to her drawers and opened them, noticing they too, were empty.

She took out her cell phone and dialed Antonio’s number. “Hey Sis.” He said on the three ring, his voice sleepily. “What’s wrong?”

“By any chance is Sylvie with you?” She asked.

At the mention of her name, Antonio was awake. He sat up in his bed. “No, we broke up.” He said, his mind filled with the memories of their awful break up. It wasn’t awful because of the stuff they said, but mainly because of how badly he felt afterwards. He was so badly hurt, but this was for the best. They both knew this.

“I know.” Gabby said in an annoyed tone. “She didn’t come to work yesterday, I have been calling and texting her for 24 hours. I’m at her apartment now, and she’s gone, Antonio. She’s gone. She packed up her things and left.”

“Shit.” He groaned as he ran his free hand in his hair. “I’ll be right there, sis. Don’t leave.” He said as he hung up the phone and quickly got dressed. This was why he never wanted to get involved with one of Gabby’s friends, but honestly this time that thought never crossed his mind. Everything was such a mess right now.

He made it to Sylvie’s apartment in remarkable timing, but it helped that he could still use his sirens, he really needed to stop doing that. But worry filled him. Where would Sylvie go? He never thought she would feel the need to leave Chicago, she loved it here. She loved it here before him, anyway.

He stepped out of his truck in a hurry and ran into Sylvie’s building. Although they spent more time at his place, sometimes they would spend it here, so he was familiarize with her apartment. He walked up to her door and opened it, seeing Gabby sitting on the couch, visibility upset.

“Hey sis. So, tell me all you know.”

“I don’t know anything, Antonio. This isn’t like Sylvie. I mean, I know she was upset, but she’s like you---she would never miss a day of work unless it was very important.”

A few seconds later, Gabby’s phone vibrated and she thought it was Matt, asking if everything was okay, but it was a text from Sylvie.

Hey, I’m sorry that I didn’t do this face to face, but I know you, you wouldn’t have let me leave. I went back to Indiana, and I’m not sure if I’m ever coming back to Chicago. Please don’t say anything to Antonio, not right now. I love you and thank you for everything, truly. You were like the sister I never had, and I’ll always be grateful for our time together. Please take care. I love you.

Gabby was so upset, she wanted to yell and hit her brother, but she knew he was hurting just as bad as Sylvie. And as much as she wanted to honor her friend’s wises, he had the right to know where she was.

“She left.” Gabby said.

“Left? Where did she go?” He questioned. “Gabby, where did she go?”

“Home.” She said.

“Home? Her home is in Chicago. But then he realized what she meant by that. “Well, then I need to go to Indiana and bring her back where she belongs.”

“No!” Gabby exclaimed. “She didn’t want me to tell you. If you go there, she’ll know I told you.”

“I understand that, Gabby. And I’m sorry to put in that position, but she belongs here!” He said, raising his voice, not because he was mad at Gabby, but because he was mad at himself.

“You broke up with her!” Gabby said, raising her voice also, to get him to understand that he can’t go there and forced her to come back to a city that brought her so much pain, and right now he was the sole reason of her pain. “You going there won’t do her any good. She left because of you! Because being here was too painful, because everywhere she turned, she saw you.”

This hurt Gabby way more than she thought it would. When Sylvie first came to town, she just lost Shay and never thought she would love having another partner, but she quickly warmed up to Sylvie. That was just the type of effect Sylvie had on people, and now she was going to get another partner that she hated. She was the only reason she was excited about working on ambo again, being able to work with Sylvie was always fun, but now she was gone.

“Fine.” Antonio said, giving up on the idea of going after Sylvie. “You need me to drive you home?” He questioned, wanting to get out of that apartment. It reminded him of Sylvie, of the one that he let get away. It was crazy because he was sure that a break was what he wanted---but now, he wasn’t so sure. He missed her like crazy already.

“Yeah, sure.” She noticed the sadness in his eyes, but figured it would be best not to talk about it right now. “If you want, I’m making a good dinner tonight, so stop by and hang with me and Matt.”

Antonio tried to smiled at her suggestion but he couldn’t. “I’ll try.”

“I guess that’s as best of an answer I’m going to get, right?” She questioned as she slipped on her coat and picked up her purse. The firehouse was surely going to be bummed out once they found out Sylvie was gone. Whenever they lost a family member, whether it was by death or them moving away, it always hurt them and the firehouse would never be the same without Sylvie.

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It has been close to a month since Sylvie moved to Indiana and at first it was hard adjusting back here. Mainly because she missed Antonio so badly. But now, the pain was almost gone and she was starting to smile again.

She started hanging out with her old friends again, although most of them were now married and had children, but that didn’t bummed her out as much as she thought it would.

Tonight, she was going out with one of her friends and she was so excited. It was the first time she’s been out since coming here. Sure, she grabbed lunch a few times with her friends but that was it. And when she did see her friends, it wasn’t for long and they were just at their house.

As much as she wanted to wear a dress, it was too soon. Every dress she had reminded her of Antonio. She sighed, wondering when she would stop thinking of him. For gods sake, they didn’t even confessed their love for another, they weren’t that serious. Although she would be lying if she said the last time she hugged him, she couldn’t feel the love they shared. “Get it together, Sylvie. It’s over.” She muttered to herself as she looked through her closet on what to wear.

She ended up deciding on jeans with a white dressy shirt that showed off enough cleavage. Not where she looked like a slut, but enough to get free drinks. Tonight, she wanted to have fun and forget about why she moved back home in the first place.

A few hours later, she was sitting in a booth at a club when her friend had to bring up Antonio. “ So, come on, we know the reason why you’re here. But at least say the guy was hot.”

Sylvie laughed, shaking her head. “What? Why does that matter?” She questioned.

“She won’t answer the question, so he must have been. Sweetie, you left Indiana because of Harrison and sorry to say, the guy wasn’t all that. If you’re going to leave a city over a man, he should be smoking hot.” Sylvie sighed at her friend’s logic. But she had a point. In some sense anyway.

“I left Indiana because I wanted a change. Coming back here doesn’t necessarily say I want a change. I just missed my old life. Chicago was great, but it was too much pain there. I’m happy here now.” Which was the half-truth. She was happy to be close to her family again, but she missed her firehouse family badly. Gabby and Stella kept trying to call her, but it was too soon.

“Can you just answer the question so we can get our groove on?” Her other friend questioned and she laughed. “Because you know she’s going to keep going until you answered it.”

“Fine, yes, he was hot.” Sylvie sighed, this wasn’t helping.

“How hot?” Her friend leaned forward. “Last question, I swear.”

“Well--” Sylvie looked around the club and turned her attention back to her friends. “You see every guy here? They are a 3 maybe 4, compared to him.”

“Picture please!” Her friend exclaimed.

“Nope. I deleted all the photos I had of him.” Which was a lie. Sylvie didn’t have the strength right now to do that. It was the only thing that kept her smiling most of the time, knowing that they did have some pretty wonderful times together. “Now, let’s dance!” Sylvie said as she got up from the table and walked on the dance floor.

Sylvie was dancing to the beat of the music, finally feeling free of the pain and everything. She was minding her business when she heard someone’s familiar voice. “Sylvie Brett. I heard you were back, but it’s great to see you.”

Sylvie turned her head and she sighed. “Harrison.” She whispered.

“What are you doing back?” He questioned, surprised she came back years later. “I should have figured eventually you would come back.”

“The same old Harrison.” And although that should have pissed her off, right now that comforted her.

“Can I buy you a drink?” He questioned.

“Sure.” She smiled, figuring this couldn’t hurt.

Sylvie couldn’t remember where her friends went, but knew they wouldn’t leave her alone.

“This is nice.” Harrison commented. “Feels like old times.”

“It does.” She agreed, nodding her head. “I forgot how easy it was talking to you.” She admitted.

“Do you want to dance?” He questioned and she nodded her head.

They both stood up from their seats and headed on the dance floor. Of course as soon as they headed on the dance floor, a slow song came on.

“We can wait for the next song.” He offered.

“No, it’s fine. As long as you don’t grab my ass.” She said, laughing.

“I promise I won’t.”

They weren’t dancing long before she felt Harrison being literally ripped from her. “What the hell?” She gasped.

It didn’t take long for her to realize it was Antonio and he was beating the crap out of Harrison.

“Antonio, stop!” She screamed as she ran over to the fight and grabbed Antonio by the shoulders. “Stop! Will you stop!”

She wasn’t sure why he was so mad, they were broken up. He wanted this, so why the hell was he here? And how in the world did he find her?

Hearing her voice must have calmed him down, because he stopped punching Harrison and he stood up. He looked over at Sylvie. “What the hell are you doing here?” He looked over at Harrison. “With him?” He spat out in disgust.

“It’s not like this is a date---wait a minute.” She wasn’t sure why she was explaining herself to him. “It’s none of your business!”

This was not the way this night was supposed to go, not at all. She finally found her friends and they were walking close to her, but they kept their distance. She heard her friend whispered though, “He is hot! Good for Sylvie.”

She ignored her friend’s words and walked over to Antonio. “Leave now!” She ordered as she crossed her arms across her chest. “I have nothing to say to you.”

“The hell you don’t.” He said, he was so angry. “You’re coming back to Chicago, to your real life.”

“This is my real life.” Sylvie would be lying if she said an angry Antonio wasn’t hot. But he couldn’t come to her city, telling her what to do.

Antonio looked around at the people staring at him. “Can we talk somewhere else?” He questioned.

“No.” She said sternly. “Go.”

“Sylvie.” He warned. He wasn’t in the mood for this. Especially not after seeing her slow dance with her ex fiance.

“Fine. You have 5 minutes.” She said as she looked at her friends who smirked at her. She could tell in their eyes they were saying they would see her in 2 hours. But Sylvie was serious, Antonio wasn’t in control anymore.

“Let’s talk in the car.” He suggested as they walked out of the club in silence.

Once they were both settled in the car and Antonio turned on the heat, she sighed. “What’s the matter with you Antonio?” She started right in on him. “You can’t go around beating up guys that are talking or dancing with me. We’re broken up.” She reminded him.

“Technically yes we are, but honestly, we’re just on a break, on a pause. So, I don’t want you dancing with anyone, especially not your ex fiance.” He said, his jaw clenching.

“You can’t expect me to wait around until you’re ready for a relationship.” She pointed out. “Besides, that was an innocent dance. You took it too far.”

“It may have been an innocent dance to you, but was it for him?” He questioned.

“That’s not the point. This makes me realize moving away was the best decision for us.”

“Oh, is it?” He questioned in an angry tone. “It seem like more of a coward move than anything.”

“Are you kidding me?” Now she was getting angry. “You have no idea what happened at Molly’s the night we broke up. I couldn’t even stay and support my friend. Your sister. Don’t sit there and say that was a coward move when all Chicago ever did was caused me pain!”

“Sylvie, your home is Chicago. There isn’t anything here for you. Please just come back. Gabby misses you, the firehouse misses you, I miss you.”

“Even if I say yes and come back, we’re still broken up.” She pointed out. “Unless your job settled down and Laura stopped being crazy, nothing changed.”

“Maybe I was wrong.”

Her heart dropped in her stomach because she thought he meant he was wrong to say he missed her. She stayed silent because she felt like if she said something, she would burst into tears.

“My life is never going to settle down. But that’s life. Maybe there isn’t a perfect timing to start a relationship. Maybe it’s just when someone finds a person that is perfect for them and is willing to put up with their crap.” He admitted. “Although, you didn’t want to put up with Laura.”

“It wasn’t that, Antonio. I just didn’t want to get dragged in with your problems with her.” She sighed, knowing how badly that sounded. “It’s one thing when I’m off and she wants to mess with me, fine. But I just don’t like my problems following me at work.”

“I know, and for that, I’m truly sorry.”

“I guess what really made me pissed and hurt even, is when she implied that I only learned to play chess for Diego for you. I really enjoyed that bonding time with Diego and I was very excited playing chess with him that day.” She admitted. “I know that sounds silly--”

Antonio interrupted her. “No, that doesn’t sound silly. I’m happy you found a way to bond with Diego. And Laura shouldn’t try to take that away---no one should.”

Sylvie took a deep breath and she nodded her head. “I’m just not sure if I can handle getting hurt that badly again.” She confessed.

“I know I couldn’t.” He agreed with her. “But I don’t know about you, but I was very happy with you. More happy than I have been in a long time. And this past month, I’ve been miserable.”

“I have too.” She reached over and she took his hand. “With being so many miles from you, you would think I wouldn’t be miserable but I am.”

“I know we can’t rush with this---and it’s okay if you’re not ready---but do you think I can have my girl back?” He questioned.

Sylvie was terrified of getting hurt again, but she was more terrified of letting Antonio go back to Chicago without her, and him moving on to someone else. Or worst, regretting all this.

“Of course. I’m yours, forever.” She said as she leaned forward and gave him a kiss.

She pulled away after a few seconds when she realized something.

“Why did you pull away for?” He groaned.

“I just thought of something.” Her face broke out in a smile. “You were jealous.”

“I was not!” He said, defensively.

“So, you just go around beating up guys?” She questioned.

“If they’re touching you, damn right!” He gave her a smile. “But that isn’t jealously.”

“Oh yeah?” She questioned. “Then what is that called?”

“Putting him back in his lane.” He said, smiling at her. “Fine, maybe I was jealous. You’re telling me you wouldn’t have been jealous if you saw me slow dancing with a woman. Her hands all over me?” He questioned.

“Okay okay, stop. I don’t need to see an image.” She said with a smile. “But yes, you’re right. I would have been jealous. You’re mine. No one else is allowed to put their hands on you.”

“They won’t.” He promised as he lifted their joining hands and he kissed the palm of her hand. “Let’s go get your stuff from your parents house and head home?” He suggested.

“I mean, it’s late, so why don’t we go to a hotel and show each other how much we missed each other?” Now that she wasn’t mad anymore, she kept remembering his angry hot face, and not only an angry face, but he was also jealous so that made him that much sexier.

“You got yourself a plan.” He winked at her as he started the car. “Just point me to the nearest, cleanest hotel.” He smiled as he kept his grip on her hand as she used her free hand to text her friends.

“I have to let my friends know that I’m not going back in.” Her thoughts went to Gabby. “How is Gabby? She probably hates me.” She said, sadly.

“No, she doesn’t.” He reassured her. “She was just hurt, but she’s fine.”

“Hopefully I can get my job back. Do you know if they hired anyone yet?” She questioned.

“No, they didn’t. Gabby asked Boden not to hire anyone yet, she had hope that you would return home.”

“I’m glad she did.” She smiled as she put her phone away. “And I’m glad you came to dragged me back home.”