"I honestly didn't think that it would affect me like that… I thought I can handle it but…"

"Hey Casey, I get it. You remember the time when Stella had something going on with Zach from Hazmat? Believe me, I know how you feel."

"But look where you are now. You and Kidd are engaged, that's miles away from where I am…"

Kelly looked at him, his eyebrows risen.

"Do you think I got there by running away from her? No, I had to step up and be the man that Stella deserves. That's my advice for you. Casey, you have to step up and tell her what you feel. She won't wait forever."

Casey nodded. Kelly got up from his bed and walked to the door.

"Get some sleep. You look like hell."

Casey smiled slightly and climbed under his covers. Kelly exited his room and went over to his own bed. Stella was sleeping deeply. Kelly climbed into bed and tried to move her ever so slightly that she wouldn't wake up. Soon, he joined her in the land of dreams…

Next morning.
Stella woke up and immediately felt the consequences of last night. Her head was pounding heavily, and she was barely able to get up in bed.

"Oh dear, this is going to hurt the whole day", she groaned to herself and tried to get out of bed.

She had to hold onto the covers to steady herself. Then she slowly began to leave the bedroom on shaky legs. She heard noises coming from the kitchen. When she rounded the corner, she saw Kelly standing in front of the stove, dressed in a pair of jeans and a sweater, cooking something that smelled delicious.

"Hey you", she said, leaning against the column next to the kitchen counter.

"Hey yourself" he answered, turning his face to her, and smiling brightly.

"What are you doing there?"

"Breakfast. I didn't want to wake you, so I got up without making to much noise. Did I wake you now?"

"No, my head did that job. But I don't mind waking up and see my fiancé cooking breakfast."

She saw the smile growing even bigger on his face and grinned as well. It was still very new to her to call him fiancé. But she loved the sound of it. And his smile even more.

"I wanted to do you something good. Your head must hurt a lot."

He filled two plates with the pancakes he'd been cooking and brought them over to their bedroom.

"Oh, we're doing that now huh?", she asked amused.

"Sure. I can't have you falling off the chair with that heavy head of yours."

His boyish grin almost let her knees go weak.

She climbed back into bed and tested the pancakes.

"Delicious", she moaned and added a strawberry to the mix.

"Thank you. Only the best for you", he replied and pressed a kiss on top of her head.

"Where is Casey? Did he head out already or is he still sleeping?"

"I made him some pancakes about half an hour ago. He had a construction job scheduled for today."

"Is he good? Did you check on him last night?"

"Yeah, I did. We talked for a while but then we were too tired to go on. I gave him some advice about Brett, and I think he was happy to talk to someone. He needed it."

Stella nodded.

"I still can't believe that she kissed that Lieutenant in front of everyone… I mean that's so not Sylvie."

Kelly nodded in agreement.

"As long as that Lieutenant isn't hurting her, I'm happy if she is happy. She deserves someone who truly loves her. She's been through a lot in the past few years…"

"Casey too. That's why they are so perfect for each other. They've been through a lot already, but they still believe in a happy future for themselves. And if they love someone, it goes very deep. He really cares about her, Stella. I saw it in his eyes yesterday."

She leaned closer to him and closed her eyes for a moment. Then she smiled at an idea that came across her mind.

"You know what? Casey and Brett did a lot for us these past few years. They helped us with advice and encouraged us to stay together. Now it's our turn to help them. You in?"

Kelly smiled again and kissed her.

"Absolutely."

A/N: Hey guys!
Today it's a rather short one, but I'm still a bit exhausted from that presentation. I got my rating yesterday and now it's over. That was a project which lasted over a year… It's just crazy… Anyways, tomorrow I'll post another chapter as I didn't put everything in here that I had originally planned.
As always, reviews are appreciated, ideas are welcome, and I hope you have a good day 😊! ~ D.