Lee felt like he was floating. His mind was fuzzy and he couldn't remember where he was. He thought about opening his eyes and taking a look around, but he was too tired and he didn't think it was worth the effort. He could feel the pain return and wanted nothing more than to go back to sleep. Then he noticed someone holding his hand and a familiar voice calling his name – distant at first, but getting clearer with every word. He forced his eyes to open.

"Dad?" He croaked.

"Lee." Adama said, relieved to see his son finally awake. "I'm here, son."

Lee had a vague memory of Kara telling him that his father was alive and that he was coming for him. He still wasn't sure where he was … on New Caprica, a Raptor or already on Galactica. But seeing his father next to him made him feel safe. Wherever he was, he was home. He managed to give his father a small smile and squeezed his hand weakly. Then his thoughts returned to Kara. There was a nagging feeling that he had been worried about her, but he couldn't remember why. The last thing he remembered was that she was holding him.

"Kara?" He asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"She's safe and doing what she's best in … flying a viper." Adama smiled. "She's on CAP."

Lee smiled at that image and satisfied that Kara was safe, he closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep.

XXXXXXX

Smiling, Kara walked through the corridors of Galactica. She hadn't realized how much she had missed flying. Being back on Galactica was great, but being back in a viper had made her feel home. She hadn't felt so good in months.

Now she was on her way to sickbay. She had promised Anders to stop by their quarters after CAP, but the Admiral had told her over the wireless that Lee had finally woken up and she just needed to see him right now. Adama had said that Lee had only woken up for a short moment, but there was still a chance that he might be awake when she got there. And even if he wasn't … just knowing that he was finally on his way to recovery made her feel better. The memories of what had happened on their way back to Galactica were still clear in her mind. Lee had stopped breathing minutes before they had landed on the flight deck and she had barely been able to keep him alive until the medics took over. Thankfully they had already been waiting for them on the flight deck; they had to resuscitate him twice before they reached sickbay. He had been in critical condition for the last 48 hours, but Cottle had told them that if he woke up soon, a full recovery was to be expected. And he had finally woken up now.

Quietly she walked to Lee's bed. He wasn't awake. She sat down on the chair next to his bed and took his hand in hers.

"Hi." She said smiling. "I heard you finally decided to wake up for a moment. It was about time." She cleared her throat, the fear she had for him the last few days threatening to overwhelm her. She had come so close to losing him. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. She had almost missed her chance to tell him all the important things. She wouldn't let that happen again. She knew he probably wouldn't remember anything she'd tell him now, but she needed to say it anyway. She didn't want to wait any longer.

"Lee, I … gods, I was so afraid to lose you. You have no idea … You have to promise me that you won't die. Ever. Or at least not before me, because … because I need you. You're my best friend, Lee, and I love you. I …" She stopped, shocked about her own words. Did she just say she loved him? Well, of course she loved him. As a friend … her best friend. She looked at him and asked herself if he wasn't really more to her than just her best friend. He had always been there for her and no matter how much she screwed up, she knew he would be there to help her clean up the mess she had created. He knew everything about her, she had told him every little detail about her life. Sometimes it took her a while to talk about certain things, but in the end she had always told him. He was one of the few people that knew about her childhood, her insecurities and about what happened to her on Caprica. There wasn't anything about her life that Lee didn't know about, things that she hadn't even told Sam. Lee was the first person she thought of when she was feeling depressed or happy and he was the first person she wanted to go to when she was feeling all alone. But shouldn't Sam be this person? He was her husband. He was the one she had married, the man she had told that she loved him. She had never said that to Lee. "I love you." She whispered. It sounded right.

"Kara."

Startled Kara turned around and saw Sam standing behind her. She looked at him surprised. Then she saw the hurt in his eyes. Oh gods, had he heard what she had just said? "Sam..."

XXXXXXX

Smiling, Tyrol watched his sleeping wife while holding their baby close to him. It was still hard for him to grasp that this little boy was his son. He was a father now. Their son was only allowed to be out of the incubator for a short time, but Tyrol needed to hold him every once in a while. With a big smile plastered on his face, he spoke quietly to him, careful not to wake Cally.

That's how Adama found them.

"Congratulations, Chief." He said smiling as he stepped closer.

"Thank you, Admiral." Tyrol replied.

"I'm sorry I couldn't stop by earlier. He looks adorable. What did you call him?"

"Nicholas Steven Tyrol." The proud father replied.

"That's a good name."

"Yes, it is." Tyrol smiled. "How is Apollo doing, Sir?" For the first time Tyrol realized how the Admiral must feel, knowing that his son was in danger every time he went out in his viper and yet he never let it get in the way of doing his job. He didn't think he could handle that so well. He prayed that the war against the Cylons would be long over before Nicholas was old enough to become a part of it.

"He's still weak but he woke up for a short moment a while ago. Cottle says he expects a full recovery." Adama replied quietly. He could still hardly believe that he had his son back. For days he had thought Lee was dead. It had nearly broken him when he had heard Lee's last message over the wireless before he had crashed on the planet. He had lost control of his viper. Adama hadn't thought there was even a slight chance that his son could have survived such a crash. And if Kara hadn't found him, he probably wouldn't have. He could still remember clearly how he felt when he had heard Kara's voice over the wireless. He had felt utter relief that she was alive and when she had told him about Lee, he had thought his heart would burst with joy. Lee was alive … once again the gods had spared his son. Then, when he had seen Lee on the flight deck, he had thought the gods were playing with him. Sparing Lee's live and bringing him back to Galactica, only to take his life minutes before he'd reached the safety of his home. But Lee was a lot stronger than Adama would have thought possible and he hadn't stopped fighting. And with Cottle's help he had survived. And Adama had his son back. He suddenly noticed that Tyrol was watching him thoughtfully. He forced himself to push the thoughts of his son back to his mind for the moment and concentrated on the man in front of him. Tyrol looked as if something was bothering him.

"Is something wrong, Chief?"

Tyrol hesitated a moment. He wasn't sure if he should bring this up. But he wanted the Admiral to know and he might not get another chance to talk to him privately anytime soon. "Sir, Sharon … I mean Boomer, she was on the planet. She helped us."

"I already read Starbuck's report. She gave you the radio." Adama replied. He still felt uncomfortable talking about the woman who shot him and whose dead body he had visited several times in Galactica's morgue.

"That wasn't all. During the attack … I couldn't get Cally to one of the ships by myself and she helped. Sharon carried her all the way, until …" Tyrol paused a moment. "Do you know what happened to her, Sir?"

"No, I don't."

"She got shot. I don't know by whom. Cally told me … She said she was shot in the back a few feet before they reached the ship. Sir, she saved my family and she died for them." Tyrol couldn't continue. When he looked up at the Admiral, he knew he didn't have to.

Adama looked thoughtfully at the younger man for a moment. "Lt. Sharon Valerii has proven several times how useful she was. I was proud to have her in my crew. Even though she was a Cylon … or maybe because she was a Cylon … What she did for us since the attacks, saving all those refugees, finding the tylium mine, Kobol, destroying the basestar … that won't be forgotten." Adama said quietly.

"And the fact that she shot you?"

"As far as I'm concerned, I wasn't shot by Sharon Valerii. I was shot by a Cylon."

Tyrol wasn't sure what he should say to this, so he stayed quiet. But he was grateful. The fact that Sharon, the woman he once loved more than anything in the world, wouldn't only be remembered as some machine meant a lot to him. Then something Sharon had said came back to his mind.

"Sir, there is one more thing …"

"Yes?"

"Sharon … She said that Dr. Baltar tested her. And he told her she was human."

Adama looked surprised at Tyrol. He wondered what that meant. Had Baltar's Cylon detector never really worked? Or had he lied to Boomer? And if he had, why did he do it? Tyrol had just added one more question to a long list of questions Adama needed to discuss with Baltar.

XXXXXX

Silently Kara sat across from Sam in their quarters. He hadn't spoken a word since they left sickbay and that worried her. Sam wasn't usually that quiet. And she wasn't known for her patience.

"Look Sam, what you heard in sickbay … what I said, that doesn't mean .."

"I know what it means, Kara." Sam said, with a sad look in his eyes.

"No Sam, you don't. Look, I … " Kara stopped, unable to find the right words.

"You can't even say it anymore, can you? That's okay, because I'm sick of hearing it."

"What do you mean?" Kara whispered.

"That Lee Adama is your friend. Sorry, your best friend. And nothing more. You know that's not true, Kara … Or maybe you don't know because you're too blind or too afraid to admit what's going on here. But you love him. I saw it in your eyes on New Caprica. You couldn't leave him to get that raptor, but you had no problem sending me back to New Caprica City right during the attack. You had no problem leaving me."

"Sam …"

"No, Kara. It's okay, really. I should have known from the start that this wouldn't work. I saw the way he looked at you right after we came back from Caprica. It was the first time I met him and I already hated him because he looked at you exactly like I felt about you. I didn't notice it then, but I do now … You look at him the same way. You always have, but I was too afraid to admit that, because I knew that the minute I did, I had lost you. But I was just lying to myself. I never had you. You were always his." Sam let out a harsh laugh. "Starbuck and Apollo … nothing ever comes between them. I stopped counting how many times I heard someone say this. I never put much thought to this, because I knew that Kara and Lee weren't on the best terms. I mean, you hardly spoke to him before we moved to the planet and you had no contact at all with him afterwards. And I thought I had won but I was wrong. You belong to him. I won't stand in your way."

Kara sat still for a long time after Sam had finished. She didn't know what to say. She wanted to contradict, but she couldn't find the right words. And if she was honest to herself, she didn't really want to. In her heart, she knew he was right. She had spent a lot of time denying it, but in the end Lee had always been the One for her. She just never thought he might feel this way about her. But then his words on the Astral Queen came back to her mind … it seemed like a lifetime ago, but he had said he loved her. He took it back right afterwards and she had teased him with it, but what if … what if what Sam was saying was true … Then she might actually have a chance to be happy with Lee. But that meant she had to leave Sam.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly, tears in her eyes.

"So am I."

"What are we going to do now?"

"You do what you always do. You're gonna stay on Galactica and be the fleet's best viper pilot. And I'll find a job on some other ship. Maybe I can become a sports teacher or something or work for security. I'll find something. But Kara, I want you to promise me something." He looked at her with a stern expression.

"I promise you whatever you want." Kara said quietly.

"You have to make it work. Whatever is between you and Lee, don't screw it up. Because I don't want to give you up, only to see you staying alone. So be honest with yourself and with him and tell him how you feel. And don't run away from it."

Stunned, Kara stared at Sam. That was the last thing she'd expected him to say. Maybe he knew her better than she thought. He had just named her biggest fear … That if she told Lee how she felt and he would actually feel the same way, that she would somehow screw it up.

XXXXXXX

Sam left the next day. Roslin, who had resumed the position as president again after Baltar had resigned for personal reasons, had offered him a job as a teacher on the Rising Star. Kara had wanted to say good bye to him on the Hangar Bay, but she couldn't get herself to watch him leaving. So instead she had said her good byes to him in their quarters.

Since her marital status would be revoked soon, she figured she would have to give up her quarters in a few days. But she refused to move back to the officers bunkroom without anyone ordering her to. As much as she had missed the Galactica, she had gotten used to have a place just for herself and she was determined to enjoy her quarters for as long as possible.

After she had rearranged her things so the room wouldn't look so empty without Anders' belongings, she went to see Lee. This time she was lucky – he was awake.

"Hi." She greeted him smiling.

"Hi."

"You look much better. Those blue lips didn't really suit you." Kara said teasing. It had always felt easier to joke about the things that scared her than talk about them in earnest. And seeing Lee half dead had scared her a lot.

"I still feel like crap." Lee said weakly. He felt tired and exhausted and talking seemed to take all his strength, but he managed to put a smile on his face for her nevertheless.

"You'll feel better in a few days."

"Promise?"

"Promise." Kara laughed. Then she became serious again. "Don't wait too long with getting better though …" She hesitated a moment and cleared her throat before she continued. "There are some things I really need to talk to you about."

"What things?" Lee asked confused. He had closed his eyes again … it was just too difficult to keep them open and he didn't need his eyes open to talk to Kara.

"Just … things. It can wait a few more days."

Lee sensed that these "things" were important to Kara, but he was simply too tired to think about it right now. If she wanted to wait, that was okay with him.

Kara could see that Lee was close to falling back to sleep. She grasped his hand and gently stroked through his hair. Surprised Lee opened his eyes and looked at her again. She had never stroked him before.

Kara saw the confusion in his eyes. "Just get some rest. We can always talk later."

Lee struggled to stay awake. He had the feeling that these "things" Kara had mentioned were more important than she had made them sound. But he could feel he was losing the fight. He managed to squeeze her hand. "Thanks for everything." He mumbled before he fell asleep.

XXXXXXX

Lee's recovery was slower than expected, but he was able to stay awake longer with every passing day. After two weeks Cottle allowed him to do some paperwork and Kara happily gave him all of it. She still hadn't talked to him about her feelings. Lee hadn't brought the subject up again; Kara figured he probably had forgotten all about it … He had been pretty drugged when she mentioned she needed to talk to him. She told herself that she was waiting for the right moment, that she wanted him to be better before she brought the subject up. She knew she was lying to herself. She was simply afraid what his answer would be.

It took her another week to finally find enough courage to talk to Lee about it. And it took her over an hour and a nurse insisting that she couldn't stand in front of Lee's room all day, before she actually stepped inside to talk to him. She put up her best façade as she walked up to his bed. She didn't want him to realize something was bothering her at the first sight.

"Hi, how are you feeling?" Kara asked when she sat down next to his bed.

"Ready to leave."

"What did the Doc say?"

"Another two days." Lee sighed.

"Aw … sorry." Kara said sympathetically. She knew how boring sickbay could be.

"So, where's the paperwork?"

"You sound as if I would bring you paperwork every time I come here." Kara replied offended.

"Kara, since Cottle cleared me for it, you brought me paperwork every single time you visited me." Lee laughed.

"Hmm, right." Kara admitted grinning. "But this time I only brought myself."

"How nice."

"Yes …" Kara's grin faded and she hesitated a moment before she went on. "Lee … there is something we need to … I mean I need to tell you."

"What is it?"

Well …" She cleared her throat, trying to bring up the courage to say the words. "Okay, you don't have to respond to anything I have to say. Just listen, think about it … not too long if possible … uhm and …" Again she stopped. She really wasn't that courageous.

"Just spit it out, Kara." Lee told her. He wondered what was bothering her. She usually never was at a loss of words.

"You know that Anders and I broke up, right?"

"Yes."

"And you know he left Galactica and that there is no chance that we, I mean him and me will get together again. Ever."

"That's what you told me."

"And you know that I'm fine with it and that it was more or less my decision. I mean, he brought it up and all, but … You know, he did it because he knew I wanted it and just couldn't say it because I didn't know at the time that I knew and …"

"Kara, you're not making any sense."

"I love you."

Lee sat on his bed, too shocked to say anything at the moment. Did she just say what he thought she said? Maybe he was still on drugs and the Doc only forgot to tell him. But if she had really said it, how did she mean it? And why did she tell him now?

"Aren't you gonna say anything?"

"You said I didn't have to respond right away." Lee said weakly. He knew he should say something. And he should say it fast, before he had enough time to overthink this and screw it up.

When Lee didn't say anything else, Kara took that as proof that he didn't feel the same way for her as she did for him. She could kick herself for even bringing it all up. Sam had been wrong. Whatever he had seen in Lee's eyes, it hadn't been love. "Just forget it, okay? This is no big deal, I mean … I'll get over it. Let's just … just stay friends and not think about it anymore, all right? Let's just pretend I never said anything. We're friends, always, and I don't want to ruin that. So, we're just friends and that's it. I'm okay with that. Really." She smiled at him nervously.

"Kara." Lee finally interrupted her rambling. He had stopped thinking about it and decided to just go with it. Kara had told him she loved him. The one thing he never thought was possible had just happened and he wasn't going to let it slip away. He smiled at her warmly. "I think we might have to find a new definition for being just friends."

"What?" Confused Kara stared at Lee. "Why?"

"Because I love you too."

"Oh …" Kara needed a moment to comprehend what Lee had just said. When she did, a wide smile spread on her face. "So, what are we going to do now?"

Lee let out a small laugh. "I have no idea."

XXXXXXX

They eventually figured out what they were going to do. They would start this slowly. And they decided not to let anyone know at first. They wanted to see if they could be together as more than friends without the whole ship watching them. It was easier that way should it not work out between them after all.

But it did work out and two months after their talk in sickbay, Lee officially moved into Kara's quarters, which she successfully had kept for her own. Adama had been surprised at first. He had always known that his son and Kara were close … he just never suspected they were this close. But when he watched them closely now, he realized he should have noticed it a long time ago.

Their demeanor towards each other wasn't that different than before. They still argued a lot, they yelled at each other and Kara continued to break most of the rules Lee made as CAG.

What was new was that they would wait in the Hangar Bay for each other after their CAP, making sure the other made it home safely. They were seen walking along the corridors with their hands entwined when they thought no one would notice and more than once got caught kissing in storage rooms. And they both looked truly happy for the first time since they stepped onboard the Galactica.

The end

A.N.: Thanks to Laurie for beta reading this chapter and for all your help with this story :) And thanks to everyone else for reviewing ... it's been all very encouraging and helpful and it's great knowing that people like this story :)