Uncle Kelly
Kelly was laying on his bed in his office staring up at the ceiling when he heard the slight rattle of the blinds and the door open. He turned his head to see Ben's face poking through the door.
"Come in bud." Kelly spoke softly knowing the youngest Darden would have searched him out. He watched as Ben walked in, gently eased the door closed, then made his way round to the edge of the bed. Kelly turned over so that he was laying on his side and facing him.
"Uncle Kelly?" Ben looked as if he wanted to ask something but wasn't sure if he should.
"Yeah bud? Kelly prompted as he patted the bed with his hand, moving over enough to make some space for the young boy. Ben smiled and crawled up onto the bed, laying down on his side so that they were face to face with his body slightly curled in towards Kelly's. Kelly couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips as he had missed both of the Darden boys after having been such an integral part of their life for many years before the death of their father and his best friend.
"Can you tell me a story?" Ben asked shyly.
"About what?" Kelly asked sensing there was an underlying question or ulterior motive. Not that kids had ulterior motives, he thought.
"About my Dad." Ben replied softly, the young boy missing his father desperately.
"Do you have a favourite from the ones he told you?" Kelly asked knowing that Andy had shared some of their childhood stories with the boys before, and wondered if there was a specific one he wanted to hear again, or if any story about his dad would suffice.
"I just want to hear something new about him." Ben answered obviously having thought about this a lot.
"Ok, alright… Uh… Did he ever tell you about when you were born and they bought you home?" Kelly was scrambling for a story, a good story, that didn't involve firefighting or something that he would struggle to tell, certain memories still made him emotionally raw.
"Nope." Ben answered in wonder.
"Your dad had this big goofy smile on his face after you were born, he was the same with Griffin. He was so proud that he had another boy… See your Mom had been winding him up by telling him she was sure that he needed to have a little girl so she wasn't outnumbered. Anyway, they bought you home from the hospital, and somehow your Dad convinced your Uncle Matt and I to be there to help." Kelly paused as he smiled at the memory seeing Ben eagerly listening.
"Your Dad gets you out of your car-seat. You are this tiny, squirming little baby, and he places you straight in my arms. Need to get you prepared for your own one day soon Kelly, he told me laughing as he caught the glare I sent to him. He loved you and Griffin, both of you. Being your dad made him so happy. Don't you ever forget that he loves you, and he was so proud of you." Kelly knew it was a shitty story but it was hard to talk about him.
"Do you miss him? I do." Ben asked before admitting his own feelings.
"I miss him everyday too." Kelly admitted softly. Ben simply nodded and pushed himself closer to Kelly, curling into his chest, Kelly responded by wrapping his arms around him.
"Did Dad save a lot of people?" Ben asked quietly, almost sleepily. Kelly craned his neck just enough to see that his eyes were closed and his breathing was slowly evening out. The question had surprised him, he'd so carefully avoided anything about firefighting but maybe he shouldn't have considering that was Andy's life work and a part of his legacy.
"He saved a lot of people." Kelly reassured Ben keeping his voice quiet as Ben placed his small hand on Kelly's chest, his hand tightening around the fabric.
"There was one call where your Dad rescued this abandoned baby girl. Every time he tried to hand her off to anyone she would cry and scream. She ended up being bought back here and your Dad stayed up all night with her. He laid on the couch with her on his chest soothing her until it was time for her to go to her new home." Kelly told Ben leaving out certain details like the baby had been abandoned on the roof of a building as winter was beginning to set in, or that this was even before Griffin, Andy's first son, had been born. That night made Kelly realise how amazing of a Dad Andy was going to be to his own children. A sadness came over Kelly at the memory knowing Andy would miss out on seeing his sons grow become the men that he would be proud of. Kelly looked down to see that Ben was asleep and found himself settling as he let his eyes close and his body relax into the sleep that had alluded him previously.
Chicago Fire
Casey smiled as he found Griffin sitting with some of the guys at the table in the common room before he looked around for Ben who he hadn't seen since before Truck had been called to the scene of a relatively minor traffic accident.
"Where's your brother Griffin?" Casey asked not to worried as the firehouse was a safe place, and Ben knew not to wonder from the bounds of it.
"I don't know." Griffin answered not even bothering to look up from the book that was in front of him. Casey looked at Herrmann and then nodded towards Griffin, a silent 'keep an eye on him' being communicated between the two men with Herrmann silently moving to join the table whilst Casey went in search of Ben.
Casey moved efficiently through the firehouse checking the apparatus floor first before moving through inside and checking in the locker room, the bathrooms, and the bull pen before finally checking the bunk room. He asked everyone if they had seen Ben as he came across them, all giving him the same answer that they hadn't but offering to help him look which he declined. The bunk room was empty, and so was his office but he stopped as he got to Severide's office seeing the blinds closed. He didn't want to disturb Severide but considering that he still couldn't find Ben he decided that he had too, and knowing how much Severide cared for the Darden boys he knew he wouldn't mind.
Casey didn't bother to knock instead he pushed the door open and paused as a smile formed at the scene in front of him. Ben was curled into Severide's chest, enveloped in his arms, and both were sound asleep. Casey made sure to silently snap a photo and then let himself out of the office just as silently as not to disturb both of them. He knew how much Severide needed this, and he knew the boys missed their Uncle Kelly. As much as Casey hated to think it, it was one of the few good things that came out of Heather's imprisonment, was that both boys got to see and spend time with those who loved their Dad almost as much as they did, especially Severide.