A Slow Burn // Brian 'Otis' Zvonecek // Chicago Fire ✔️

25 || SAFE

Walking into shift the next morning like nothing had changed wasn't exactly the easiest thing in world for Otis to do, but he managed.

Although he wouldn't admit that it hurt just a little when he saw Casey and Gabby walk in before him, the two of them holding hands as they did, something he wished he could do with Riley. But he respected her wanting to keep their relationship a secret for the time being, even if it meant him having to bottle up his feelings about it.

It's not like he had many feelings about it honestly, he understood why she wanted to keep it a secret. But it was mainly just the lingering feeling he felt in the pit of his stomach, the one that made him think that perhaps Riley was ashamed to be seen with him. That because he wasn't at all her usual type that she was worried about what people would think or say about their relationship.

But he had to remind himself that that wasn't at all the type of person Riley was. She'd never once been ashamed to be seen with him when they were just friends, so why would it be any different now that they were together?

"Hey, there she is! Fifty-ones own defender!" Herrmann cheered out, his coffee mug held in the air as Riley entered the common room to a wave of cheers and gentle banging on tables.

"I was gone for half a shift." Riley chuckled, getting bombarded with hugs, shoulder pats, and ending up sandwiched in a Capp and Tony hug.

"You got rid of the big bad wolf, no pun intended, you deserve a warm welcome." Herrmann smiled as he approached for his own Wolf hug. "Good to have you back, kid."

"Thanks Herrmann, and it's good to be back... Although that extra half a day was very much needed." Riley said around a yawn as she went to grab herself some coffee after another rather late night, courtesy of her new boyfriend.

"Get up to anything fun?" Sylvie asked curiously, sipping her coffee from her seat at the table.

"Just enjoyed the sun and watched the dogs enjoy the pool now that it's too hot for them to go on walks." Riley replied with a slight shrug of her shoulder, ignoring the grin Cruz had on his face that he tried, poorly, to hide behind his mug.

"God, I'm still so jealous that you have your own pool." Gabby muttered, making Riley chuckle a little at the slight pout on her face. She'd never forget the day the others found out about the rather large pool in her back garden, their reactions were priceless.

And she couldn't help but wonder what their reactions to her new relationship would be either, although she'd soon find that out.

The day went on, and it was just after lunch when Otis decided he needed to do something rather than just sit around and sulk over not being able to tell anyone about him and Riley. So, he headed out to apparatus floor and towards the Truck, deciding to do something useful and give the axes a quick clean and polish to keep both his hands and his mind busy.

Otis couldn't help the feeling in the pit of his stomach when he caught a glimpse of Casey and Gabby, the two of them happily standing next to the Squad table. Seeing Casey's arm around Gabby and hers around him... it just made him a little sad that they were able to act like a couple when at work.

"Hey, are you okay?" Riley's voice snapped Otis from his thoughts, tearing his eyes away from the couple.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Otis replied, forcing a small smile as he went back to cleaning the axes.

"Are you sure? Cause you look a little... I don't know." Riley said concerned, not really sure how to describe how Otis looked, but something was definitely bothering him. And when he just sighed and dropped the cleaning cloth onto the table, she knew she was right.