The call came as she had been preparing dinner.

"Hello?"

"I'm looking for a Casey Chappel."

"…this is her," Casey answered cautiously. She didn't recognize the caller's voice and hadn't been expecting any kind of phone call.

"I'm calling because you're listed as the emergency contact for Brian Hackett."

Casey's eyes widened. Emergency contact? For what? "Yes I know him, he's my friend, that is… we share a hous… we live together," she stammered, stumbling over her words.

The caller seemed to pay her no heed. "Could you please come to the hospital right now?"

Casey gasped. "I…I… yes, of course! …please tell me he's okay!" she added. She had to know, even if she was fearful of what the answer might be.

"Don't worry ma'am, he appears to be okay. Please come straight to the emergency ward, we'll explain when you get here."

Emergency ward?! "Okay I'll be right there!" Casey said, struggling to maintain her composure.

"Thank you." The caller hung up.

Casey's mind raced as she considered what to do next. She had to get to the hospital right away, but how? Brian had taken his car to work, so that wasn't available. Taking the bus was another option, but it would take substantially longer from out in the beaches. No, she would need a ride.

She dialed the Sandpiper number, desperately hoping that Fay was still there. The phone rang, and rang, and rang, and just as she was about to give up…

"Hello, Sandpiper Air?" She was greeted by the familiar voice of Fay, though her tone was more surprised than cordial this time.

"Fay! It's Casey!" She didn't realize she was shouting into the phone.

"Casey? Is everything all right?" Fay asked.

"Do you know where Brian is?" Casey blurted out. She had not been intending to ask Fay that directly, but it just came out without thinking.

"Err, no I don't," Fay answered after a moment. "There weren't any passengers on the late afternoon flights today so he left here about 2 hours ago."

Casey swallowed hard. "Oh okay, I was just wondering! He's probably just out with… someone or something!" she said, trying to sound as nonplussed as possible.

"Casey dear, are you sure everything's all right?" Fay asked again. "You don't sound like your usual self and you seemed fine when I saw you earlier."

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Casey replied quickly. "Listen, the reason I called is I was hoping to find Antonio, is he there?"

"He's not unfortunately, in fact most people here are gone too. You saw how slow it was earlier," Fay answered.

Casey knew that already; the reason she had gone home early was because there was so little people traffic at the airport that business at the lunch counter was nil by mid-afternoon. She had wanted to take the opportunity to try whipping up a decent dinner for once, maybe even surprise Brian with it when he came home…

"I was actually on my way out the door when the phone rang, so I came back to see who it was," Fay continued, snapping Casey back to reality.

"Right, sorry about that!" Casey briefly considered telling Fay what was going on, but all that would do was worry her, and it's not like she would have been able to help her get to the hospital in any way. She needed a car, and only Antonio or even Roy would have been able to help.

A car? Wait a minute.

There was one other option, and it was right under her nose.

"I have to go, I'm sorry for holding you up!" she said quickly, hanging up the phone immediately without waiting for a reply.

Casey ran out to the back lane of the house where the garage was and opened the door. Inside was Helen's old Jeep, adorned with its signature CELLO license plate, parked in restful slumber.

When Joe and Helen left, they had intended to sell both of their vehicles, but Helen couldn't bear to part with the faithful Jeep that had served her all these years. Seeing as they had the use of a single-car garage at the house, she decided to just park it there while they were away.

As the gears turned in her head, Casey came to the realization that there were two problems with her idea. The first was that while she had driven Helen's Jeep twice before in emergencies, neither instance had been a particularly good experience. Once she had lost control and almost run it into a ditch, and the second time she was so nervous that she almost caused an accident. She had driven other cars before (including Brian's) with no issue, but something about the size of the Jeep and how it handled just made her very uncomfortable.

Despite that, the second problem was actually an even bigger one.

The car currently had no insurance.

Obviously it didn't; Helen had cancelled her policy before leaving as she didn't expect that anyone would be around to drive it. Ironically, the last time the sisters spoke, Helen had suggested that Casey get it re-insured so that it would be available in case she ever needed it in an emergency. Casey had laughed it off as a bad joke; Helen knew how she felt about driving that thing.

"Because you never know, okay? I really think you should do it," Helen had said. "Anyway, the key's in my nightstand in the bedroom."

While she had been pondering all this, Casey realized that she had made her way back into the house and into the master bedroom. She opened the top drawer of Helen's nightstand and found the key to the Jeep, right where Helen had told her it would be.

As she picked up the key and cradled it in her hand, Casey felt her rash impulsiveness slowly ebbing, replaced by fear and nervousness. "…I shouldn't do this. I can't do this," she sobbed as she picked up the phone on the nightstand and began dialing the number for the taxi service. It was the safest option, and while it would take more time for dispatch and travel from out in the beaches, she figured that she could probably get to the hospital in an hour and a bit if she was lucky.

But… Brian!

Her resolve re-ignited like a flame. "I can do this. I have to," she said through gritted teeth, closing her hand around the key.

Casey ran back down to the still-open garage and got into the Jeep. She took a deep breath as she put the key in the ignition and started the engine. "I can do this," she repeated as she pulled out of the garage.

"Ma'am, are you all right?" the nurse behind the front desk asked with concern.

"Fine!" Casey popped back up to her feet. She had run into the emergency ward so quickly that she almost lost her footing as she got to the front desk. "Here… for Brian Hackett," she continued, a bit out of breath.

"Oh Mr. Hackett, yes," the nurse said, quickly checking a form on the desk. "Please come with me," she added, standing up and stepping out from behind the counter.

As would be expected in an emergency ward, the nurse moved at a very brisk pace. Casey was having trouble keeping up with her even though she was in walking flats instead of heels. "So, are you Mr. Hackett's wife?" the nurse asked as she turned down another hallway.

Casey's eyes widened. "Oh no no no, nothing like that," she replied, shaking her hands exaggeratedly.

"Girlfriend?"

"No, not that either," Casey answered quickly. "His brother… my sister, moved to Austria… we live together here," she added with a nervous smile, as if that would somehow explain everything.

Without breaking stride, the nurse turned and gave her a curious look. She looked like she was about to ask another question, but suddenly stopped in front of a room. "Here we are," she said as she opened the door and entered, with Casey following behind.

Brian was lying in the bed in a hospital gown, propped up in a slightly elevated position. He was startled by the door opening and turned his head, and Casey saw his eyes widen with an almost panicked look as he saw her enter.

"Mr. Hackett, your… emergency contact is here," the nurse said, turning to Casey with the same curious look from just before.

"…I see that, thank you," Brian replied, his facial expression returning to normal.

"The doctor should be back shortly with your results," the nurse continued. "In the meantime, buzz us if you need anything."

"I will, thanks," Brian said as he let out a heavy cough. Casey thought she saw him wince in pain for a moment, but it was gone in an instant.

The nurse nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her.

"Brian, what happened? Are you ok?" Casey asked worriedly as she sat down in a chair beside the bed.

"Been better," Brian answered as he tried to sit himself in a more upright position. He grimaced again more visibly this time and clutched at his abdomen. "Nope," he mumbled as he reached for the remote controlling the bed and elevated the head further.

When he turned back to Casey, she looked like she was frozen in fear, as if touching him would make him shatter into pieces. "Casey, it's nothing," he said in what he hoped was a reassuring tone.

"Nothing?! How can this be nothing?!" Casey said shrilly, her volume seemingly increasing with each word.

"Hey hey, keep it down! We're in a hospital here!" Brian said with a shushing motion. He grabbed her arm with his free hand and could feel that she was shaking. "Casey, breathe."

Casey could feel that she was on the verge of hyperventilating, but Brian's touch was helping to calm her down. She squeezed her eyes closed and focused on breathing for a few seconds. When she opened them again, she saw Brian staring at her with deep concern, his hand still wrapped around her wrist. "I'm… sorry," she said finally. "It's just that… they called me and didn't tell me anything, and I didn't know what to do, and I…"

"Easy, easy there girl," Brian said softly, squeezing her wrist lightly as he did. "The hospital called you?" he asked curiously.

"Yes, they did," Casey replied after taking another deep breath. "They said I was listed as your emergency contact."

The look of panic from before returned. Brian let go of her arm as he looked away, trying to avoid her questioning stare. "…is that so?" he mumbled.

"You could have at least told me, you know," Casey said, a bit angrily.

"Told you what?"

"That you changed your emergency contact to me after Joe and Helen left!"

Brian sighed, knowing he had to come clean now. "…I didn't change my emergency contact when they left," he said slowly.

Casey was completely dumbfounded. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"I mean that you've already been my emergency contact for longer than that," he answered. Already knowing what she was going to ask next, he continued, "Since that time I almost left the island… you know, when Joe threw me out because we…" he trailed off, not wanting to finish the thought out loud.

Things were starting to make more sense now. The immediate aftermath of the fire that destroyed Helen's house had been unpleasant for Casey too, but all her sister had done was ruin some of her clothing as a measure of revenge. Helen had never gone as far as saying that she wanted Casey out of her life, like Joe had done to Brian. While the brothers patched things up soon after, it was understandable why Brian would have made that change at that time in particular.

"I still don't fully understand though," Casey said after a moment. "…why me?"

Brian still wasn't looking at her. "…I mean, I thought Joe and I weren't going to have anything to do with each other for who knows how long, you know? And at that point you… me… well, you know," he left that thought hanging too.

Casey understood what he was getting at, but she didn't quite know how to react. "I know, but at that point we were just… look, I'll just say it. You were leaving the island and what we had… then… was just a physical fling, nothing more." She felt her eyes moisten slightly as she said it. "What would I have done for you in an emergency? What difference would it have made if you just put down… whatever girl you happened to be seeing that week as your contact?" Her eyes met Brian's for a moment and she glimpsed something she had only seen from him on a few rare occasions – genuine hurt.

As soon as she saw that, Casey wished that she could have taken back what she said. But after a brief silence, Brian replied, "If something did happen to me, I think I would have wanted you to know. And that hasn't changed over these past two years, so… I never bothered changing my contact to anyone else."

Casey felt a lump in her throat as the moistening in her eyes intensified. She turned away quickly hoping that he wouldn't see. "…it's not just about wanting me to know," she said, her voice slightly wavering. "If you really needed help, how do you know I would do it?"

She was still trying to avoid his gaze, but from the corner of her eye she saw Brian's mouth curl into a small smile. "You're here now, aren't you?" he asked with a hint of bashfulness.

Try as she might, Casey couldn't hold back a smile of her own at that. "And you owe me BIG now, you know that, right?" she said with faux outrage as she turned back towards him. "Do you know what I did to…" she stopped suddenly and placed her hand over her mouth, realizing what she was about to say.

Too late. Brian's expression instantly changed into a concerned look. "What? What did you do?"

Casey laughed nervously and didn't reply. She tried to avoid his piercing stare but it stayed fixed on her. "I… kind of drove Helen's Jeep to get here," she said quietly after a moment.

Brian's eyes widened. "You drove the Jeep? I didn't even know we still had the key."

"Helen told me where it was before when she was telling me to get it re-insur…" she caught herself again, a bit too late. Not that it would have mattered; the guilty expression on her face betrayed anything she might have left unsaid.

The conversation might have gone differently had it been with Joe or Helen, but Brian was no stranger to playing fast and loose with rules (and occasionally common sense) in the past. "…I'm glad you got here fine, but that was still a risky chance you took," he said, trying his best not to convey any displeasure.

"Well I had no choice, okay?" Casey retorted. "You had the car, I couldn't find Antonio and calling another taxi would have taken who knows how long, and I was panicking because I didn't know what happened to you, and…" she started to ramble again.

"It's okay, Casey, it's okay," Brian cut in, trying to stop her from spiraling. "But how was the drive here? I don't even remember you saying you had ever driven that thing."

Truthfully, the drive hadn't been terrible. It was dark outside by the time Casey had gotten onto the road, but traffic in the evening was much better than mid-afternoon volume. That was a good thing as she had probably been driving a bit faster than she should have. Perhaps the biggest difference since her last experience with the Jeep was her increased familiarity with the island and its geography, thanks to her time working on the tourism board. "The drive was fine," she replied simply. "Parking the thing when I got here was a bit of a pain though."

"Will you be okay driving it back?"

The realization that she would have to make the trip again suddenly hit her. "Sure, it's just like coming here but in reverse, right?" she chuckled nervously.

"You might find it easier if you drive forward instead of in reverse," Brian deadpanned with a smirk, eliciting an eye roll from Casey.

"You're so corny!" she said with a small laugh as she slapped the side of his chest lightly.

"Ow!" Brian grimaced in pain as he instinctively clutched at the spot she hit.

"Oh my God!" Casey realized too late what she had done. "Brian I'm so sorry!" she gasped, frozen in place again like before.

"No… it's okay," Brian replied slowly before letting out an unnatural-sounding cough. "Just hit the sore spot, that's all," he said as he tried to re-position himself slightly on the bed.

"Here, let me help," Casey moved over to try and support him as he turned. As she moved closer, she saw that a part of his abdominal area had been bandaged under his gown. It dawned on her that as their conversation went off on a tangent, the very first question she had asked him still hadn't been answered. "Brian, you still haven't told me what happened to you," she pressed.

"Oh… that," Brian said hoarsely. "Well…"

As if on cue, the door to the room opened and a doctor walked in looking at a clipboard. "Mr. Hackett, how are you feeling now?" he asked. As he looked up and saw Casey, he nodded. "Ah, and you must be his emergency contact. Miss…?"

"Chappel," Casey answered. "Doctor, could you please tell me what happened? What's wrong with him?"

The doctor frowned slightly. "Well, we won't know for certain until his x-rays come back in a day or two, but my guess is he most likely has broken ribs."

Casey gasped. "Broken ribs? But how? Is it… serious?" she asked carefully.

"Well, it depends on the damage," the doctor answered. "If it's just the bones, they should heal by themselves with time. If there are other injuries around it, there might be… complications."

Casey swallowed hard. She unconsciously took hold of Brian's right hand and clasped it inside her own.

"Are you still having trouble breathing at all?" The doctor asked, turning to Brian.

"Um…" Brian glanced over at Casey, who was still staring at the doctor anxiously but now squeezing his hand even harder. No, now wasn't the time to hide anything, even for her sake. "…a little," he answered. "Sometimes when I turn a certain way, it's a bit painful. And the uh, thing from earlier? Sometimes," he added, lowering his voice as he said it.

Casey turned to face him. "Wait, what thing? What are you talking about?"

"Not now, Casey," Brian said quietly. He brought his other hand over and placed it on top of hers for a moment, hoping it would be reassuring in some way.

The doctor scribbled something on his clipboard. "We'll have to keep an eye on that. Before we know the full extent of the damage, don't do anything strenuous. No driving, no hard physical activity…"

"Flying a plane?" Brian interjected.

"Pardon?" the doctor looked up.

"…I'm a pilot," Brian clarified.

"Well not for the next little while you're not," the doctor said, continuing to write. "We don't want a repeat of the episode you had while driving."

Casey opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when she saw the devastated expression on Brian's face. The realization that he wouldn't be allowed to fly for the next little while at least was slowly sinking in on him.

"In any case, you're good to return home," the doctor continued. "We'll call you once we have an update. Miss Chappel," he said, turning to Casey. "Will you be able to take him?"

Casey snapped to attention. "Yes, I will," she said blankly.

"Oh perfect, then if you could please keep an eye on his condition then," the doctor said. "I'll write you a prescription for some painkillers just in case," he said to Brian.

"…thanks, doc. I appreciate it," Brian said quietly.

The doctor nodded. "I'll have the nurse finish up your paperwork, and then you can go. We'll be in touch." With that, he turned and left the room.

As soon as the door closed again, Casey wrested her hand free from Brian's hold. "Brian, tell me what happened… please," she pleaded. "Don't lie to me, or try and hide something like you just did with the doctor."

"Casey, I wasn't…" Brian started. He was still trying to come to grips with the fact that he had been grounded. "Can we talk about this late…"

"Please, Brian. Please," she repeated, cutting him off. She was visibly fighting back the urge to cry now.

Brian felt his resolve weaken as he saw her on the verge of tears. He already knew that this was a talk he couldn't have avoided for much longer. "…I've been feeling pain in my chest over the past few days. I thought it would pass, but yesterday I started having coughing fits and tightness that made it hard to breathe sometimes. Then…" he paused as a feeling of anxiousness came over him. "When I was driving home earlier today, it felt like my entire chest just… seized up, I couldn't breathe. Fortunately, I was able to pull over before I blacked out for a little bit."

"Oh… my God..." Casey gasped. "But how did you end up here then?"

"I came to a few minutes later," Brian answered. "But I knew something was wrong, so I called 911 and an ambulance came to get me."

"Thank goodness," Casey breathed a small sigh of relief. "But the doctor said you might have broken ribs? How could that have happened?" she asked.

"Um…" This was the part of the conversation that Brian was dreading. "It was probably when I was working on the plane last week and I… fell off the top of a ladder," he said slowly.

Casey shot up out of her seat. "What?! You fell off a ladder?" she shouted, quite loudly.

"Casey, hospital," Brian hurriedly made a 'quiet' signal with his hand.

"Why didn't you tell me about this?!" she continued to yell. "When were you going to tell me? Were you EVER going to tell me?"

"It's been a bit sore but nothing I couldn't handle," Brian answered timidly, flinching as he turned away from her. "I just thought it was a bruise or something."

"Brian, you. fell. off. a. ladder." Casey was glaring a hole straight through him now. "You couldn't breathe and you blacked out while you were driving, and you thought it was JUST A BRUISE?"

"…that other stuff didn't start until yesterday." Brian was backed into a corner now and he knew it. In his mind he knew that he probably should have gotten checked for internal injuries as a precautionary measure after the fall, but he had a full weekend schedule that day and didn't want to forfeit the most profitable day of the week just for a checkup. That was a bet he had been willing to take.

Most sayings about gambling follow the same principle though: you win until you lose. Given the circumstances, Brian also knew he was lucky he didn't lose more than he already had today.

Casey looked like she was ready to completely explode at him, but instead simply dropped her head and sat back down on the side of the bed. He could feel her trembling. When she spoke again, her voice was quieter, but no less angry. "…that stuff you said earlier… about wanting me to know if something happened to you, that was all just a lie, wasn't it?"

Brian was stunned. "What? No, I… I really meant it."

"Then why would you keep something like this from me?" she said sharply. "…how am I supposed to help you if you won't even tell me when something's wrong?"

"I… I didn't want to seem like I'm forcing you to help," Brian answered weakly. "…I didn't want to be a burden."

Casey looked up at him, tears now dripping out of her eyes. "…I'm here now, aren't I?"

As Brian looked back at her, the sadness on her face wrenched his heart. He forced himself off the bed, ignoring the spasm of pain in his chest that came with the sudden movement. As he closed the distance between them, he wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her into a tight hug. "Casey, I… I'm really… I'm really sorry," he said quietly over her shoulder, feeling tears of his own welling up.

Casey let out a surprised gasp at being pulled close, but the emotional dam inside her burst and she began sobbing uncontrollably. She pulled both her arms inside his embrace, balling her hands into fists and lightly pounding against him. "Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" she cried in between sobs.

"I know… I know," was all Brian could muster up. He felt her entire body shaking as she continued to cry.

"Why would you even think that you would be a burden?" Casey eventually choked out as her sobs began to slow.

"Because I know that… I've been a burden on people my entire life," Brian replied, his voice cracking slightly. "My mother, my brother, my friends… now you. I just keep making trouble for everyone."

Casey pulled her head off his chest and looked up at him. While the strong embrace he still held her in provided a feeling of safety and warmth, the expression on his face was one of fear and doubt. In that moment, she saw a reflection of her own insecurities in him and came to the realization that they were more alike than she had thought.

"…I can be a burden too, you know," she said softly, leaning back against his chest.

"…what?"

"A real pain in the butt," she continued. "A major troublemaker."

"Casey…"

"…so we'll be each other's burden," she finished as she looked up, trying her best to crack a smile. "Whatever happens, we can get through it… together. Okay?"

The sight of her smile along with the encouragement she was trying to provide was like a ray of sunshine cutting through a dark cloud. "Yes," Brian nodded. "…you are a real pain in the butt," he added with a bashful smile of his own.

"Brian!" Casey's face twisted into a scowl.

"Couldn't resist," Brian replied with a genuine laugh. "But Casey… thank you, really."

Casey slowly wrapped her arms around his back, returning his hug. "You're a real pain in the butt yourself," she sighed as she leaned her head on his chest once more. "And Brian…"

"…what is it?"

"No backsies, okay?" she whispered softly.

Casey couldn't see his reaction, but she felt his hold on her tighten once again. "…no backsies," she heard him repeat above her.

A/N: Nothing really to note this time, except that this was originally a one-off that was re-purposed to fit into a larger storyline, or at least try and move it along. Thanks for reading!

UPDATE: The small after-stories that were collected in the chapter previously titled "Interludes" have been placed with their corresponding chapters for easier reading; see chapter 3.5 below.

"Easy does it, watch your step there," Casey said as she extended her arm out, offering support.

"Casey, relax. I know how to get back into the house," Brian replied as he waved her off. He was trying to walk as normally as he could, but his steps were visibly slower and off-rhythm compared to his usual pace.

"Excuse me for trying to be careful!" she said with a huff, pulling her arm away. Part of the reason she was so worried was actually her own fault; she had forgotten to leave the front house lights on in her haste to leave earlier. She continued to hover around him as he gingerly made his way towards the front door. "Is it hurting to walk? You're moving kind of funny."

"It feels like a slight pinching when I move around too much," Brian replied. "One of these should help though," he added, shaking the bag of painkillers he was holding in his hand.

"The pharmacist said you should only take one if the pain feels unbearable," Casey scolded. "He said it's strong stuff; you shouldn't take too many if you don't need it."

"Keep up the nagging and we'll get to unbearable pretty soon," Brian grumbled as he unlocked the door and opened it, pretending not to notice the threatening look she shot him. As he felt around for the light switch inside, he stepped on something uneven and lost his balance, only being saved from falling over by Casey grabbing him from behind. "…good catch," he said, wincing slightly from the sudden movement and the fact that she was holding onto him around his injured rib area.

"Sorry, are you ok?" she asked with concern as she let go of him. "Did you trip on something?"

"I think so," Brian answered as he finally found the switch and turned the lights on. He made a face as he looked down and realized what he had stepped on – one of Casey's high heels that had been casually discarded near the door. "…your shoe," he said dryly.

Casey let out a nervous squeak. "I must have made a mess when I was looking for my flats earlier…" she said as she stepped inside and surveyed the area. She had rushed out in such a hurry before that she honestly had no recollection of leaving things lying around.

"Evidently so," Brian said with a smirk as he carefully stepped over several other items strewn across the ground, including an umbrella, a wind jacket, several hair clips and two pairs of socks.

"I was in a rush to leave because I was wor…!" Casey started to retort. She was expecting him to laugh and keep walking away while ignoring her like he usually would, but this time he stopped and turned back, looking at her intently. She felt herself flushing slightly and turned away from him, leaving an awkward silence in the air.

"…I know you were," Brian said, finishing her thought. The two of them could usually tease and banter without inhibition, but tonight was different. "…sorry," he added quietly as he turned around and made his way to the kitchen, suddenly feeling his throat dry up.

As he entered, he noticed that the kitchen was a mess inside, with half-prepared ingredients and cooking tools laid out across the counter. It was clear that Casey had been preparing dinner before she rushed out to the hospital. The realization that she hadn't eaten anything all night on top of everything that had happened made Brian feel even worse than he already did. "You were making dinner?" he asked as he heard her footsteps approaching from behind.

"Yes, but… well, you see," Casey replied timidly. "…you must be hungry. Let me see if there's something in the freezer that I can heat up for you." She brushed past him as she stepped towards the fridge, but was stopped by him lightly grabbing her arm.

"You want to order a pizza?" Brian asked. "…you haven't eaten anything tonight either, right?"

"I haven't, but… I don't really want pizza right now," Casey answered.

"It's pretty late now, I don't know if there's anything else we can get delivered at this hour," Brian said, trying to think of any other available food options. There were some restaurants and bars that would still be open, but they didn't even have a car to use now. Brian's own car had been towed away after he had been picked up by the ambulance earlier, and just now he had insisted that Casey leave Helen's truck at the hospital and they take a taxi home instead so she wouldn't have to drive it back.

"It's okay, really!" Casey said, trying to inject some energy into her voice. The truth was that she really was hungry, and after everything that had happened tonight she felt dead tired now too. "I'll be fine, but you, you really should eat something… to keep your strength up."

"I… don't really feel like eating either, to be honest," Brian replied slowly. "This ended up being quite a long day, maybe we should just go and get some rest. Tomorrow's still a work day."

"You're not serious, are you?" Casey asked incredulously. "How can you think about work right now? You need to stay home and rest!"

"There's going to be Sandpiper stuff I need to handle, especially since I won't be able to fly for a bit," Brian answered, the bitterness in his voice evident at that last part.

"If it's just re-booking your passengers for tomorrow, I can go do that for you!" Casey offered frantically.

"I know that it would probably be best if I took some days off," Brian said, looking directly at her with a sad smile. "But without anyone else to help run the airline, I… I really can't. It's something I have to do."

"…isn't there anything I can do to help?" Casey asked desperately. The helplessness she felt in the moment made her want to cry again.

"You've already helped a lot tonight," Brian said, putting one arm around her shoulder and pulling her into a half-hug. His reassurance didn't seem to have the effect he had wanted, as she simply stared down at the ground while letting out a quiet sniffle.

"…just promise me one thing," Casey said after a moment.

"What is it?"

"That you won't push yourself too hard while you're recovering."

"I'm not going to be crawling up any ladders for a while, Casey," Brian said as he tried to put on his usual carefree air, despite his body sending a painful reminder of what happened the last time he did.

"I don't mean just physically," Casey continued, her tone stern. "You've been taking on so much yourself and it's just…" she trailed off for a moment. "Just promise me, Brian."

After everything that had happened tonight, Brian knew that she was serious. "Okay, I promise," he answered, turning her around so that he was facing her directly with both arms on her shoulders. "No backsies," he added cheekily.

"You'd better not be lying," Casey said, not resisting his hold but trying her best to scowl at him. "Or else you can consider my offer to help rescinded."

"Well while that's still on the table… I just thought of something that I do need your help with," Brian said, letting go of her.

"What's that?" Casey asked curiously.

"Could you come with me to get the car back tomorrow? I just remembered that the doc said I'm not allowed to drive either," he replied sheepishly.

"How could you forget that?" she said with a glare of disapproval. "But yes, of course. I figured I'll have to drive for both of us while you're healing."

That was something that Brian had actually not considered until now. "Will you be able…"

"I will," Casey stopped him before he could finish. "Because… it's something I have to do," she said with a bright smile as she straightened up and stood tall in front of him.

Not for the first time tonight, Brian found himself both surprised and impressed by her resolve. "You got chutzpah, lady," he said with a laugh that turned into a big yawn.

"You're tired, you should go upstairs and sleep," Casey said as she stifled a yawn of her own. "I'll clean up here first," she said, turning back towards the messy kitchen counter.

"No you won't," Brian said, holding out his arm to block her path. "Or at least not by yourself you're not."

"Brian now's not the…" Casey started to protest.

"…we'll get through it together, right?" he cut in, with a bright smile of his own on display.

Casey couldn't hold back a giggle. "If only your memory was always this good," she said, pulling a nearby towel off a hanger and handing it to him.