Hello everyone. welcome to my second attempt at a CPD fic. Unlike my last fic, this is being co written by a fan of the show markMcG9718, who is writing his own CPD fic, yet to be published so this will be better hopefully. However I am open to any and all support, so review if you have ideas or any comments to make.

Erin sat at her desk, drumming her pen in boredom as she glanced down at her paperwork for the day. It wasn't like she had much of anything else to do today, for it had been fairly quiet. Despite that however, she hadn't exactly been feeling well. Though she had been working at her new job for a few years now it had done little to sooth her. She just went through the motions at work, barely even thinking about anything else. Her co-workers just thought that she was kind of a zombie because she barely spoke two words to anyone other then when she needed to.

It wasn't like she asked to be like this. Things were just hard for her. She was practically on her own and the only thing that she could count on was Hank Voight, her adoptive father. Hank was the captain at the Chicago intelligence Unit for the police department, something that Erin admired about him. Erin had aspirations about joining him at the intelligence unit and had even had plans to go to the police academy right after high school, something that Hank agreed with, though he was concerned about how it would affect Erin, given her past.

Growing up on the streets hadn't made life easy for Erin, having had a father who was in prison, and a mother who loved the next bottle and pill. Erin had spent more time crying on the floor than she had eating dinner at the table. When she was fourteen, unlike other teenagers she spent more time in prison and on the street as opposed to finding a nice skirt and wearing make up. In no uncertain terms, Erin was a drug addict. She wasn't afraid to really admit it now, because during her unfortunate drug filled rage, she met Hank Voight, who adopted her as his own and had her clean up her act. Erin couldn't be more grateful if she tried.

The only bad part about that time was her time in high school. It wasn't like she got into any trouble quite the opposite as a matter of fact. Well, there was that one time that she got into a fight. She had to spend all of her time in high school trying to avoid any sort of confrontation, or she would be expelled from the school. It had been hard work, but she was able to not disappoint Voight. He was the closest thing to a father that she had ever known and she intended to keep him proud as long as she could.

Erin shook her head, shaking the thought out of her mind. She needed to concentrate on her work. She would have to deal with her thoughts later; she couldn't afford any distractions right now. It was barely past dinnertime and she needed to get her work done before she went out with Jay.

The two had been in a committed relationship for a while now and by all counts, she was glad to have someone like him in her life. They had been partners for three years now and despite a rocky start at first, she found herself smitten with the elder more experienced detective. Through thick and thin they were partners and eventually lovers, much to her pleasure.

The two were planning a nice dinner this evening, at one of the nicest restaurants in town, Everest. How Jay was able to get a reservation at such a place Erin wasn't sure, but she did know that he probably had to ask for a lot of favors to be able to even try and get a seat there, let alone a seat for two. Not that she was complaining. She absolutely loved it when he spoiled her. At least when she wanted him to, if he did it too much then she just might go a little stir crazy

Speak of the devil, just as she was about to finish her last bit of work for the day, a rough hand made contact with her shoulder, followed by the breathy thick whisper in her ear "you ready to go sweetheart?" Hearing Jays voice sent shivers down Erin's spine, and she moaned quietly, not wanting to really attract very much attention. Not like there was going to be much attention to begin with, since she and Jay were the only ones still in the room, Voight was down with the others at the diner along with the fire crews and the doctors who worked at the Hospital, including Will, Jay's brother. It was lucky that they were even able to get some timer alone, since they were often so close to their Squad mates. But ever since they went public, it had been nothing but congratulations and celebrations. It was annoying to no end that the two weren't able to get any sort of privacy beyond being intimate with one another. So she was looking forward to having a nice simple romantic dinner with her lover, as opposed to a public meal while suppressing their lust.

At least she would get to wear the nice dress she bought a week ago. The one that she promised jay she would wear, just for him tonight.

Ok she was getting a little ahead of herself, but point was she was a little excited. She turned her head, giving Jay a sultry look. "Of course I am." She whispered seductively, causing jays eyes to twinkle with a hint of mirth. Erin couldn't help but giggle. She absolutely loved teasing Jay like this without any further ado, she dropped her pen on the table pushed out her chair and stood up. With a smile, Erin linked her arm with his and together they walked out of the room, ready to head to their shared apartment.

With a very labored grunt, Althea sighed as she placed the large box containing the last of her belongings from the foster home center that she had been at. She pushed her hair out of the way as she stood up, glancing at the empty room that was supposed to be serving as her new room in this… she sighed, feeling a lump in her throat as the thought entered her mind. Foster home. It was like a cancer in her mind. The more she said it, the more pain she felt about it.

Althea, affectionately know as Thea, had been born around 15 years ago. That was about all she knew ladies and gentlemen, because Althea knew absolutely nothing else. She had grown up in an orphanage as a child, born with a heart condition, known as Ventricular Septal Defect, a hole in her heart. However, it was rather aggressive and unfortunately, the orphanage couldn't afford any treatment for her. They were able to do minor surgery's to make she was kept alive, but they just couldn't afford to cure her completely. The surgery's often left her hurting and as a result of her medical condition, it seemed that no one wanted to adopt a child predisposed to a medical condition. This often left her disappointed and in every case, curled up on the floor and in tears all she wanted was to have a family and a loving home to stay in. a place where she could truly be someone.

But even this was not to be for her. When Thea was ten, she was shoved into the foster care system because the orphanage just couldn't afford her surgeries anymore. As a result, Thea was shoved between schools and homes every few months for the past four years. It left her feeling abandoned and yearning for love, something that she felt that she wouldn't get because just when she felt that she could start getting comfortable, she would once again be uprooted and lifted from her home moved to a nee temporary hone until someone finally decided to adopt her. Something she just felt wouldn't happen at this point.

No one wanted some one like her. They didn't want to be saddled with a child who would be a burden, mostly to the savings. A tear fell down Thea's cheek as she sat on the dirty mattress; the only thing in the room. All she wanted was a family, even friends to heal the hole inside her heart, no pun intended.

Well, at the very least, school was something she could look forward to. If not for the non-existent friends she could at the very least fill her head with something. Thea enjoyed. Learning was the only respite she had against the terrible storm that lay dormant within her. If anything Thea had a desire to learn about medicine. Maybe it was just because he had her own medical condition, but the idea of helping people like her seemed like a very rich and rewarding prospect for her future. At the very least she could give hope to those who had none, like her.

The problem was, that she didn't have any money for college, and she would have to rely on a scholarship. It wasn't that she didn't believe that she couldn't do it, it was that she was scared that she just wouldn't get the chance to. Despite her passion for education, she wasn't sure whether or not with her condition she would get a chance to go to college.

With a sigh, Thea flopped on her bed, looking at the increasingly boring ceiling that made her eyes feel worse. Blank. Completely blank. Just like her life. Wow. How impressive was she?

Unconsciously, her hand reached for her neck, which housed her most prized possession. It was a golden necklace, with a heart shaped locket. It didn't seem so special at first glance but it was what was inside the locket that made it so special to Thea. Inside was a picture her as a baby, wrapped in the arms of a young woman, who seemed to be staring down at her. Unfortunately, her face was partially obscured. It seemed to Thea that the picture was taken when the woman wasn't paying attention. By all means, this was most likely her mother, but she was never able to secure a face or even her name. It didn't seem like there was any way of knowing who this woman was.

Even worse, there was also an inscription on the inside. Thea had said the phrase so many times that she knew it by heart. Blood bonds us together forever. Blood. Someone's blood ran through her veins, bonding her with her mother and father forever as a family.

It made Althea's heart ache all the more. Why had someone gone through the trouble of the trouble of making a locket with that phrase engraved into it and give it to her, only to abandon her and leave her in an orphanage? It was cruel, and it was wrong.

All Althea wanted was to find her birth parents, but she didn't even have a birth certificate, let alone the names of her birth parents. The only thing she had was her name and this locket. Not exactly a large amount of resources to go on, but she had hope. Wherever her parents were, she hoped to be able to find them some day.

But she would deal with that later. Tomorrow was her first day at school and she was going to make sure to make the best of it. With a sigh, Thea closed her eyes and fell asleep.

Let me know what you think!