







































(there will be spoilers for every new Chicago Fire fan, obviously, and sorry for my English)
Before we loved Chloe Decker, we loved Leslie Shay
We lost Leslie Shay on May 13, 2014 and I remembering her in this post, because it happened 12 years ago. The post will focus mainly on the moments that made every Shay-fan happy. And I tell you why, because I lost count how many heartbreaking events were in CF regarding Shay... just think about her love life, remember she didn't have a baby with Severide, and Dawson didn't help her when Shay fell into a down-spiraling depression after a patient's death. Also think about all her physical injuries (including her last and fatal one), it was obvious that the writers really loved to hurt her character for no reason (and it was just 2 seasons).
So I made a collection with Shay's best one-liners and funny moments. TBH no post has enough space to list all of them. However, if I missed some, just write down in the comments. There will be also the episode numbers in case you guys are planning a rewatch because of Shay, it will be easier to find these scenes. I also made a list of her best moments, that were the most heartwarming for me. And yes, I made these because we speak about Leslie Shay, one of the most loved fan-favorite character of CF. I dare to say that Shay IS the most loved character of CF even today (for me it's no doubt)
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Shay's best one-liners and funny moments
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S1 E01
Shay: - Peter Mills, are you gay?
Mills: - Me? No...
Shay: - Because I am
Also funny that after Peter goes to Shay, she looks up, looks behind Peter's back, and realizing immediately this will be a prank from the others
And Shay's voice when she says "Can you hand me that box right there?" is super cute and sweet
S1 E02
Shay: - There's Willie, our favorite doorman. I should flash him next time
S1 E03
Hermann: - We spent it all on the elliptical machine so Shay could keep her ass toned.
Shay: - Ohh, Hermann, please. Everyone benefits from me having a toned ass
S1 E03
Shay: - Why don't you put her in a bikini while you are at it?
Otis: - Before I respond, are you joking, or are you serious?
Shay: - About as serious as putting you in a bikini.
S1 E03
Shay's face after Nicki's father assumed that she is Severide's partner
Shay's face after Nicki's father assumed that she is Severide's partner
S1 E04
It looks like that Shay likes the Devil horns! What an amazing foreshadowing....
Chicago Fire - Lucifer crossover
S1 E04
Shay: - Turns out I may have overestimated her lesbianism.
S1 E07
Dawson: - Whose fault do you think it is?
Shay: - Woman's. It's always the woman's. That's why I'm happily single (then honking angrily)
S1 E09
Shay: - Don't trouble yourself, Peter Mills, I had two sunflower seeds in the ambo
S1 E09
Shay: - Look at you. All lit up like a Christmas tree
S1 E10
Shay: - Chief, is this about the diamond necklace Dawson stole at the residence?
S1 E10
Shay: - Damn, girl, you wear that dress, and I will be your date
S1 E11
Shay: - Listen, it's not too late to switch teams
S1 E11
Shay: - If I were straight, I'd throw the biggest hump into you right now
Shay and Severide after her accident
S1 E13
Shay: - Where in code of conduct book does it say you can't carry a taser?
Dawson: - Page one
Shay: - I should totally read that someday
S1 E13
Shay: - You look like you're about to pop.
Clarice: - Yeah, a few more weeks.
Shay: - I heard if you eat eggplant, the baby comes right out
S1 E16
Shay: - It's nice and warm at the hospital, Mick. You will like it. Lots of pretty nurses.
Mick: - Prettier than you two?
Shay: - Come on, be realistic.
S1 E21
Shay (after Dawson shows her the coffee Mills brought to her): - Ohh, marry him!
S2 E03
Shay: - Oh, and you guys should be wearing eye protection
S2 E04
Shay (Shay's WTF-face is priceless): - Please tell me we're not making a huge mistake here
Shay's reaction to the Battlestar Galactica poster
S2 E11
Shay: - You happen to see Ellen yesterday?... It made me at least 5% gayer
S2 E12
Shay: - ... and then Katie goes to Severide, and she's like "Otis broke my heart, Kelly, he broke my heart!"
S2 E13
Shay: - I have two words for you. Lesbian night
S2 E14
Cruz: - Those sell for like 800 bucks a piece
Shay: - Okay. Bidding starts there. Who wants them? This lady needs a new pair of shoes
S2 E15
Shay: - Okay, sweetheart, tonight you and I are gonna unscrew the legs on her bunk
Dawson: - See? You understand me
Shay: (blinking and smiling)
S2 E16
My all-time favorite Shay one-liner
Shay: - First time I've ever had that in my mouth
Dawson: - Oh yeah? How is it?
Shay: - Meh...
S2 E17
Shay: - Kendra's friend is 60
Mouch: - You think I'm 60???
Shay: - ............. no! No way! ........... How old are you?
S2 E18
Dawson: - Did you bring alcohol?
Shay: - Girl, get to know me already.
S2 E21
Shay: - Oops... thanks for the warm welcome, guys, but it's time for us to start our periods
S3 E01
(it was their last funny moment together in the series)
Severide: - Do you even know how to work that thing?
Shay: - I am the master of working this thing.
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Shay's most heartwarming moments
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S1 E02
Hermann, with Cindy and the kids thank Dawson and Shay to save his life
S1 E04
Shay brought cookies to Hermann after his speech defending the Firehouse
Shay brought cookies to Hermann
S1 E13
Dawson: - Dad, can we keep it? Can we? Can we?
Boden: - Keep what?
Shay: - The dog
S1 E13
Shay: - I'm glad you're getting yourself healthy, even if it means I have to let you go
S1 E17
(just seeing their friendship)
S1 E20
Shay saving Cindy's and the baby's life
S1 E20
Shay to Severide: - Our friendship is one of the only really good things I have going on in my life
S1 E24
Cindy and Christopher ask Shay and Severide to be the godparents of their newborn child
S2 E01
When Dawson grabs Shay immediately signing that she wants Shay as her "partner"
S2 E19
Shay helps Casey to buy an engagement ring
S2 E22
(I know it's a rather bittersweet than happy moment, but it has to be on the list, as it was their last happy moment together)
Shay: - I love you, you know?
Severide: - I know, I love you too
Shayveride together one last time
And just a little interesting thing:
Shay was the last one who said "previously on Chicago Fire", in the beginning of S2 E10
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Let me recommend some links at the end.
I have always seen comments even nowdays, which claimed that Lauren left the CF show because of Lucifer, but it's not true. If you think it's true, well, you are wrong, and I highly recommend my previous post, in that I wrote about this topic, with many sources. There are a lot of BTS pics too about Shay
If you are interested in why the creators of CF killed Shay, I recommend my another post, but beware, it's very long. However, I collected all the information about the background of Shay's death, what was the official explanation, was it believable or not, what the CF fans thought about it, how it affected the viewer numbers, etc.
https://www.reddit.com/r/lucifer/comments/1fd0olk/in_memory_of_chloe_decker_and_leslie_shay_my_2/
And if you are a Shayveride fan, I recommend this vid, it's my favorite (thanks to YT user "fragilelittleheart"):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjS1LmJgCIo
(
this post is an updated repost of my original from one year ago
https://www.reddit.com/r/ChicagoFireNBC/comments/1kl5frz/we_miss_leslie_shay_for_11_years_now/
)
(there will be spoilers for every new Chicago Fire fan, obviously, and sorry for my English)
Lauren German and Taylor Kinney (BTS Shayveride in Season 3)
I think that Shay was the heart and soul of the first 3 Seasons, and I will share some pics about her (like the one above), proving my point. Before posting the pics, I will also try to address some false claims that spread online, and at the end of the post, I will share an interesting exploration.
I read a post more than a year ago, where OP asked everyone about (after started watching S3, I guess) why the CF creators / writers made the decision of get rid of Shay's character. For me the shock was not by the post, but the reactions. There were a lot of comments, with a lot of agreeing UpVotes, and they all claimed that Lauren left because of Lucifer, and I see comments like these even nowdays. Claiming these things about Lauren is the biggest disinformation a redditor can write, so I ask everyone politely who contributed to these comments, that please stop spreading the disinformation. Here are the facts:
Lauren left Chicago Fire after Season 2, because the CF creators made this decision (about Shay). In other words, they fired her, or didn't extend her contract, which is the same. It was NOT Lauren's decision. There are really uncountable sources about these facts, I will list just the most importants, but you can easily find more:
I. TV Line interview, where Matt Olmstead spoke about how hard was it to make this decision, and how professional was Lauren when she heard it first. He also tried to explain things (in my view = he tried to apologize, and people don't apologize for things they don't commit), so it's clear that Lauren had nothing to do with it
https://tvline.com/interviews/lauren-german-leaving-chicago-fire-shay-killed-off-549958/
II. Chicago Sun Times article, where Dick Wolf tried to defend the decision after the uproar of the audiance
III. Lauren's interviews, where she spoke about how important it is (was) for her to play Shay (yes, Leslie Shay was an important role for Lauren, and she was happy to portray her, not to mention CF viewers LOVED her a lot, I was not the only one who thought that Shay was the heart and soul of the show), but they fired Lauren half year later after this CF interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyUiUoTYt38
IV. IMDB dates - if you check any actor or actress on IMDB, you can clearly see that there are multiple roles for them even in the same year (it happens regularly). Shay's death episode was aired on September 23, 2014, meaning the decision was made way earlier (they also had to cast Kara Killmer for swapping the role with Shay), and Lauren was just a guest star in that episode. The first Lucifer episode was aired on January 25, 2016, the difference between the two dates were 16 months. It means it was a way longer than usual time period while Lauren found her next role as Chloe, and Lucifer started only when CF was already in the middle of it's own 4th season.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3609400/?ref_=ttep_ep_1
V. Tom Ellis interview
Tom Ellis and Lauren German had a mutual friend, Jesse Spencer, who told Tom (who was already casted as Lucifer earlier) that Lauren will auditioning, so it's also a clue that it only happened way later, after she was not part of the CF cast anymore
Lauren German and Jesse Spencer (Shay and Casey BTS in Season 3)
So, again, please don't claim that Lauren left because of Lucifer, it's not true. Yes, she had luck with Lucifer, but Lucifer wasn't the reason of her CF exit, it was the consequence. I can understand that there are fans out there, who don't like when the CF creators are blamed for anything (they were blamed a lot because of Shay's death), but it's not the right move to spread disinformation to protect them, and to put responsibility on Lauren, when she had nothing to do with Shay's death. The OP in that old post was very attentive, when asked that question, because IMHO it's a valid question: WHY CF creators made this decision? A wise commenter once said "I'm not sure I completely buy him (Matt Olmstead) wanting to kill off a fan favourite for the sake of new storylines in season two lol". I tried to find answers too in the past, you can check my very long posts about it, if you are interested (here are the links to the original CF version and to the improved Lucifer version), but it's another story
https://www.reddit.com/r/lucifer/comments/1fd0olk/in_memory_of_chloe_decker_and_leslie_shay_my_2/
Lauren German, Jesse Spencer, Taylor Kinney (BTS in Season 3)
I hope that addressing these false claims was a successful effort, and this information will reach everyone who made or agreed with false claims before. Now please answer honestly, do you really think for a second after watching/reading these interviews, seeing these pics (not to mention the large amount of BTS videos too), that Lauren ever wanted to leave this cast?
A typical Shayveride interview
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GvirHSaxoU
In real life, Kinney is grieving the loss of his costar, too.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2014/10/15/18477177/chicago-fire-if-anyone-can-saveseveride-it-s-casey
"I miss her like crazy," he said about Lauren German. "She was a great scene partner. Great actor. Someone to work with and someone to confide in. It was an honest relationship. We hung out off the stages, too. I didn’t take that too easy.”
Lauren's interview
German did admit she misses “the whole Chicago crew I worked with — and the wonderful fans in Chicago too. Everyone in your town is so great.”
The actress said she considers co-star Monica Raymund “my best girlfriend” and also keeps up with fellow “Chicago Fire” castmates Taylor Kinney and Jesse Spencer “quite a bit.”
“In fact just the other day, Monica asked me that after I wrap [the initial 13 episodes of] ‘Lucifer’ to come over [to Chicago] for a few days and hang out with those guys. So I may do that around the end of February.”
If so, it’s likely German and her “Chicago Fire” pals will make a beeline to the Palm restaurant on East Wacker Drive.
“Taylor and Jesse and I lived in the same building [on the New East Side], and we’d go to the Palm like three times a week. It was so cozy there. We even had our own regular little booth!”
Lauren German and Monica Raymund (Shay and Dawson)
Lauren German and Teri Reeves (with Jesse Spencer, Monica Raymund and Charlie Barnett)
Lauren German and David Eigenberg (Shay and Herrmann)
Lauren German and Jesse Spencer (Shay and Casey)
Lauren German and Christian Stolte (Shay and Mouch)
Lauren German and Monica Raymund (Shay and Dawson)
Lauren German and Christine Evangelista (Shay and Rafferty)
Lauren German and Jesse Spencer (Shay and Casey)
Lauren German and Jeff Hephner (Shay and Clarke)
Just an interesting thing at the end
This post is an updated repost of my original from one year ago, the original's date was Jan 12th, 2025
It looks like that after I called Shay the heart and soul of the show, other people found it a touching remark, because in the following year I encountered at least 3 other posts, where Shay was called like that.
Aug 18th, 2025
"she wasn't only the heart and soul of the show"
Sep 15th, 2025
"10 times Leslie Shay proved she was the heart of Chicago Fire"
Jan 6th, 2026
"she was the heart and soul of Firehouse 51"
After reading these posts, I guess it's no more a doubt: Leslie Shay (and Lauren German) was, and always will be the heart and soul of Chicago Fire
Lauren knew her ex-colleagues were missing her because they made a video about her new job.
Or maybe they were just jealous, because Lauren became a leading actress.....
https://www.tiktok.com/@chicagofires/video/7255400196711107886
She also got free advertising from Severide
"Watch Lucifer!"
On the latest Lucifer Unit episode of Rom-Com Detectives, Tara and I break down 2x08, "Trip to Stabby Town." Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcasting platform or on our website at: https://www.romcomdetectives.com/episode-66/
YouTube: https://youtu.be/kET-oXf1JJI?si=cmXzWy7YLi_NLb09
Catch up on previous episodes here: https://www.romcomdetectives.com/lucifer-unit/
Let us know how you did on this week's LuciQuiz!