Hi Readers: And welcome to a new version of The Caseys featuring Andrew Darden. I know that it's been a while since I've tried to write anything (just like before I wrote the original version of The Caseys), so I can only hope that I finally have a chance to write.
Quick Note: I am getting rid of the aneurysm right away, as I didn't like how that ruined their story. Let's hope that you're ok with it.
Chapter 1
September 29, 2018 – Casey Home, Chicago – It was something which Matt rarely did: he took a day off for no particular reason; though, in this case, there was a reason why Matt took the day off: because Gabby was home. The woman he loves was home, and he wanted to spend some time with her after having missed her all summer. And now that she was home, he was basically hovering over her and making sure that she didn't leave him. "I hope you know that you don't need to worry about me leaving." Gabby said, as she ran her hand up and down Matt's toned chest while cuddling up to each other on their couch (where they just made love); meanwhile, Matt turned his head and smiled at the woman he loves. "I know. I can see it in your eyes that you're happy to be home with me." Gabby nodded, as she was happy to be home. Though, she just didn't know how long this was going to be her home. "I just hope that you know that I want to work on our marriage. Matt, I love you and I still want to be with you. It's why I asked you to come with me." Matt nodded, well aware that Gabby wants to be here with him so that they can work on their marriage; as does he.
He wants to hold his beautiful wife in his arms, as they take the time, they need to figure out what the future holds for the both of them; especially children, as that was one of their dreams in life. "I know, Gabby. I know that you want me to come, but I just can't do it. Not just because this is our home, but because I was never comfortable with you being in Puerto Rico in the first place based on your condition." Gabby sighed, well aware of what condition Matt was referring to: her aneurysm, which could kill her if it bursts. And if it bursts while she's pregnant, then it could kill both her and their unborn child; Gabby just didn't understand why Matt didn't have more faith in her. "I know why, Matt." Turning his head, Matt sighed as he looked into her eyes. "How often do you think about the fight we had on your last day here?" Looking up at Matt, Gabby decided to be honest with him. "I think about it each and every day. It's hard to forget what you said to me when it hurt me so much." Matt agreed with Gabby. "I hope you know that I regret what I said more than anything, and I wish I could go back each and every day to not say those horrible things to you." Gabby agreed with Matt.
She knew how much Matt loves her, so she had no doubt in her mind that he truly meant it when he told her that he wishes he could go back and not say those horrible things to her. "Can I ask why you said them?" Matt nodded. "It's because I'm scared, Gabby." Gabby snickered, as she didn't think that was a good reason. "And that's a good reason for you to say what you did?" Matt shook his head, as he knew it wasn't a good reason; but, it is when you combine it with his past. "Gabby, I think we both know that my fears aren't something that you can really ignore when I've had to deal with the death of a loved one before." Pushing herself up off Matt's chest, Gabby was surprised over what he just told her. "Are you implying that this is related to Hallie?" Sighing as he moved his hand on top of Gabby's, Matt nodded as he stared into her eyes. "I'm sorry, Gabby. I just….I can't take the risk of losing another woman I love to death." Gabby agreed with her husband as he told her that, prior to laying down on his chest and wrapping her arms around his neck. Meanwhile, Matt placed his hand on her back and stroked it with his thumb. "Oh, now this is comfortable. You, naked in my arms."
Gabby agreed with Matt as she bent down and kissed his muscular chest, loving the feeling of him underneath her. "I'm not going to lie and say that I don't love this feeling too, especially when you've been working out." Matt agreed with Gabby and smiled. "I had a feeling you noticed that I've been working out." Matt said, as he bent down and kissed the top of Gabby's head. "It kept me busy." Gabby agreed with Matt. "I'm glad you found something to keep you busy. I just hope you know that I never meant to be gone that long. I just…" Gabby sighed as she decided to confess to Matt the reason she was gone so long. "I've been hiding something from you." Confused, Matt looked at Gabby. "What?" Gabby sighed. "I was gone so long because I was pregnant." Placing his hand on Gabby's neck, Matt was shocked. "Sorry, what?" Gabby nodded as she teared up. "Matt, please don't be mad. I just…. I knew how you'd react if you found out." Matt agreed with his wife. "Wait, did you miscarry?" Gabby nodded. "I was 17 weeks along." Matt looked at his wife.
Whilst, at the same time, he did the math. "So, that would be the end of August?" Gabby agreed with Matt as she held him close. "Please don't be mad at me." Matt agreed with his girl, only to place his hand on her arm. "Hey, it's ok. I'm just glad that you're okay." Gabby nodded as Matt told her that. "I found out the gender." Matt agreed with his wife. "What would we have had?" Gabby nodded. "It would've been a girl." Matt smiled as Gabby told him that, as he always wanted to have a girl. "God, this is hard to hear. Gabby, I'm so sorry that you had to deal with that alone." Gabby nodded. "It was why I delayed. I just…I didn't know whether you would hold me like this if I came back right away." Upon hearing Gabby tell him that, Matt could feel his heart break; after all, that truly showed him just how broken down their marriage truly was. If Gabby didn't have faith that he would hold her in his arms when that was what she needed him to do, then how can he be expected to do that in the future? "Do you still feel that way? Like you can't rely on me?" Gabby shook her head, as she didn't feel that way anymore. "No, I feel like I can trust you." Matt smiled, appreciating that.
After all, he loves her more than anything and he wants to be with her for the rest of his life. "Gabby, I hope you know that I really hate how hard things have gotten for us. It's the last thing I ever wanted for us." Gabby nodded, well aware that was the case. "I'm sorry for having almost left again. So, thanks for convincing me to stay." Matt agreed with his wife and smiled as he pressed his lips to her forehead. "Oh, you weren't leaving me again that easily. Gabby, I don't want to lose what we have. Sure, we've gone through some tough times recently, but that's marriage…and I want to try and save it." Gabby agreed with Matt, as that was precisely what she wanted to do as well: save their marriage and figure out a way forward. "However, we can only do that if you stay with me, Gabby. I'm sorry, but I can't go to Puerto Rico knowing that you have an aneurysm." Gabby agreed with her husband, as that made sense. "Is that why you were mad that I went in the first place?" Matt sighed. "I mean, I understood. But I also thought it was a bit reckless. I mean, you tell me that the hospitals aren't in the best condition there…yet you're there when you have a deadly condition which I created."
Pushing herself up off Matt's chest, Gabby was confused as she didn't understand how that could be the case. "How did you create the aneurysm?" Matt sighed. "Well, I was the one who got you pregnant, and that pregnancy created the aneurysm. So…" Nodding, Gabby agreed with Matt as she (somewhat) understood what he meant, while also feeling her heart break for him again. So, she decided to lay down on his chest as they each held each other close on the couch. In the process, Matt realized that Gabby was shivering. "Hey, are you cold, Gabby?" Gabby sighed as Matt asked her whether she was cold, as she was cold. "Yeah. Not exactly used to the Chicago weather yet." Matt agreed with Gabby and smiled at her. "Then how about you go start the shower for us? We can take a shower and then we'll cuddle in bed and talk, figure out what we can do while I'm off." Taken aback, Gabby looked at Matt. "I thought you just took off one shift?" Matt bit his lip. "I was thinking of taking a bit more time." Gabby nodded. "Can we talk about it before you make any decisions?" Matt looked at Gabby as she said that, raising his eyebrow. "I know, the hypocrisy. But I have no income right now."
Matt nodded, well aware that was the case; as a result, it meant that he's the only source of income for the both of them. Therefore, this is something they need to talk about. "I know, I should've spoken to you first; but I also know that we need to work on our marriage. So, I wanted to just get the time off right away. I want to spend time with you so that we can concentrate on us. Can I just explain what my thoughts were?" Gabby nodded. "What were they?" Matt sighed. "It's hard to work on your marriage when you have to work for 24 hours every 48 hours. I want to completely concentrate on you for a bit." Gabby agreed with Matt and smiled at him, only to bend down and kiss him softly. "I love the sound of that." Matt smirked as he placed his hand on Gabby's neck, prior to kissing her again. After which, they both started to take things nice and slow with each other. "Maybe we can go on a road trip or something?" Gabby smiled, as she loved the sound of that. "That sounds like fun. Now, want to take a shower and we can talk about that more after?" Matt nodded. "Sure." Getting up, Gabby smirked as she walked away in the nude to go shower. "TEASE!"
Laughing, Gabby soon ran away to go start the shower for the both of them; meanwhile, Matt grabbed his boxers and her lingerie to carry them to their room. After which, he ran after Gabby (also in the nude) to go join her in the shower.
6:30 AM, September 30, 2018 – They had plans to go meet up with their friends at the firehouse to tell them that Gabby's back in town (temporarily), and to tell them that they're going to leave on a road trip; that was what the couple decided to do yesterday while they were holding each other in bed. But before they went to the firehouse to talk to their friends, Matt and Gabby needed to get ready after another round of sex; starting with a nice shower, which Matt was hoping to share with Gabby. So, as he walked into the washroom with a towel around his waist, he smirked as the sight in front of him was truly gorgeous. "God, you look so sexy right now." Turning around to look at Matt as she heard him come into the washroom, Gabby smirked as she thought the same about him. "I can say the same about you." Matt nodded, smirking as he started to take off his towel; meanwhile, Gabby opened the door to the shower so that he could join her. "You already wash up?" Gabby smirked, as she most certainly did not wash up. "Where's the fun in that?" Smiling, Matt proceeded to pick Gabby up in his arms and then pushed her back against the wall of the shower.
Upon doing so, Matt wrapped her legs around his waist and smiled as he leaned in to kiss her softly; meanwhile, Gabby placed her hands on Matt's face as they started to take things nice and slow with each other in the shower. "Thanks for last night." Leaning back, Matt was confused; after all, he had no idea what she was talking about. "What are you talking about?" Gabby sighed. "When I woke up in the middle of the night." Shaking his head, Matt leaned his forehead against Gabby's. "Hey, you don't need to thank me for that. Gabby, you're my wife. I love you more than anything, and I want to help you get through this. I know you say that you're okay and starting to feel better since it's been a while since you miscarried, but we both know that you're still dealing with it. Don't say that you're okay if you aren't, ok?" Gabby nodded as she wrapped her arms around Matt's neck, appreciating that he knew how she felt right now. "I hope you know that it means the world to me that you're all okay with this." Matt nodded, as he just wanted what was best for her. "I just want what's best for the both of us. And that includes your aneurysm, unless you lost it." Gabby smiled.
After all, she must've forgotten to tell him that yesterday. "Yeah, about that aneurysm." Matt looked at Gabby as she told him that. "What? How?" Gabby smirked as she leaned in and kissed the love of her life. "The miscarriage. Somehow, it left." Smiling as he leaned his forehead against Gabby's once more, Matt moved his hand to Gabby's neck. "I wish I knew that, as it means that me and you don't need to worry about you getting pregnant anymore." Gabby agreed with Matt. "I know. However, that doesn't mean that I don't want to work on us. Matt, I'm still hurt by what you said. Sure, you apologized and explained it to me, but…" Shaking his head, Matt leaned in to kiss her softly. "No need to explain, Gabby. I get it. I really hurt you, and I'm going to let you take however long you need to forgive me. I'm just glad that we're still married." Gabby agreed with Matt as she wrapped her arms around his neck, only to lean in and kiss her loving husband once more. "Listen, let's not take long. I'm ready to go see everybody at the firehouse." Matt laughed as Gabby told him that, well aware that she was more than ready to see their friends…with the exception of Sylvie.
Gabby already told him everything that happened between them, which is why he has plans today. "I might talk to Sylvie today." Gabby agreed with Matt. "If you feel a need to do so, then I won't stop you; I promise." Matt agreed with Gabby as he leaned his forehead against hers once more, only to smile as he placed his hands on her legs and started to take things nice and slow with Gabby. Meanwhile, she wrapped her arms around his back and moaned as they started to take things nice and slow with each other.
Firehouse 51 – Gabby wasn't going to lie, she was a bit nervous as she got out of Matt's truck here at the firehouse today for the first time in a couple months; so much so, that she ended up freezing up on her side of the truck while holding the breakfast they brought for the house. Hell, it was the entire reason why they got up so early: so that they could get some breakfast for the firehouse. However, Matt was now worried that Gabby was going to drop the breakfast; so, rather than let her hold the breakfast on her own, he made his way over to her so that he could take over. "Hey, Gabby, are you okay?" Taking a breath, Gabby looked into Matt's eyes. "Maybe we should've done this at our place." Matt shook his head, as they both knew that wasn't what they wanted. Gabby, are you okay here?" Gabby bit her lip. "I'm just worried. My last memories here weren't good, so…" Matt smiled, as that was precisely why he wanted to do this here. "That's actually why I wanted to talk to our friends here, rather than at our place: so that you can get happy memories here again for when we come back." Smiling, Gabby agreed with Matt. "I like the sound of that."
Matt smiled as Gabby told him that, prior to wrapping his arms around her; after which, he leaned in and kissed her softly…only to be disturbed by Stella. "GABBY?" Turning their heads, Matt and Gabby, both laughed. "Here I was thinking that I'd get one more minute alone with you." Gabby agreed with Matt and smiled. "Uhm, do you mind…" Matt agreed as he went to grab the rest of the breakfast they bought for the firehouse from her. "Sure. I'll bring this inside. Anyways, I need to talk to Andy." Gabby looked at Matt as he said that. "Truck 81 has been leaking recently. I need to know whether I need to put a form in." Stella laughed as Matt said that. "Oh, Chief already did. Maybe avoid him, as he's not impressed that you didn't do it." Matt sighed as Stella told him that, only to look at Gabby. "Luckily, I already got time off." Confused, Stella looked at her best friend. "Time off? You just got home." Gabby bit her lip as Stella said that, only to look at Matt. "I'll give you guys a minute. I need to talk to Sylvie, anyways." Gabby agreed with Matt as she watched him walk away, while Stella looked at Gabby. "Why does he need to talk to Sylvie?" Gabby sighed. "She assaulted me on my last shift."
Stella was surprised when she heard Gabby say that. "What?" Gabby nodded as she decided to tell Stella precisely what happened.
Common Room – "Herrmann, get out of the kitchen. You aren't making breakfast this morning." Turning around when he heard Matt's voice, Herrmann was surprised. "Captain?" Smiling, Matt agreed with Herrmann. "Yes, it's me. I brought breakfast." Herrmann agreed with Matt as he said that. "Where were you yesterday? Chief said that you were out sick." Matt snickered as Herrmann said that, only to see Chief walk into the common room. "I can ask the same thing. Casey, what are you doing here?" Matt smiled as Chief asked him where he was, only to have Gabby answer his question for him. "Sorry about that, Chief. We wanted to keep me being home a surprise." Turning around, Matt was surprised. "Did you already tell Stella what happened?" Gabby nodded. "Yes, and I'm going to tell Chief next; explain why I left." Boden shook his head. "It's ok, Gabby. I already got your report about what happened with Sylvie." Gabby sighed, as she didn't know whether he did or not; though, she's glad…especially since Sylvie just came out. "Gabby." Looking at Sylvie, Gabby smirked as she looked at Boden. "So, you know how Sylvie threw the ambo bag at me and abandoned our patient?"
Turning their heads, everybody was shocked when they heard what Gabby said; though, they didn't look at her when she told them what Sylvie did. Rather, they looked at Sylvie so that they could get answers from her. "Sylvie, it's time that you and me have a chat. Go to my office." Sylvie gulped. "Guys, you know that isn't me." Gabby then glared at Sylvie. "You bitch. Don't you dare slander me when you already assaulted me! You already got the chance to be PIC, so consider yourself lucky that I even gave you the summer." Walking over to Gabby, Matt wrapped his arm around her. "Hey, take it easy and breathe. It's okay. Everything is okay." Gabby agreed with Matt. "Sorry, I thought I was ready to see her again." Matt agreed with Gabby as she wrapped her arms around him. Meanwhile, he bent down and kissed the top of her head. "Listen, how about you get breakfast out? I'll talk to Chief and get some time off." Boden was shocked to hear Matt say that. "What?" Matt nodded, only to walk away so that he could talk to him alone. "Andy, how about you come with me so that you can understand why we're going away too." Andy laughed as Matt said that, only to notice Gabby.
Taking out his earbuds, Andy got up and proceeded to make his way over to Gabby. "Sorry, Gabby. I just saw you right now." Gabby agreed with Andy and smiled as he walked up to her. "Not sure whether I like the fact that you were MIA for a moment. I thought I sent you a text in May asking you to keep Matt safe." Andy agreed with Gabby, well aware that he did that. "And I did. He's alive and well, isn't he?" Matt rolled his eyes as Andy said that. "Not sure that's what she meant, Andy." Andy then turned his head and looked at Matt. "I covered for you yesterday, hiding from our Chief that you weren't really sick but playing hooky with your wife." Matt got nervous as Andy told him that. "So, I'd shut up and make sure that you take it easy. Get me the reports so that I can submit them." Andy shook his head. "I already took care of them. We had a slow shift yesterday." Matt agreed with Andy and smiled, appreciating that. "Thanks, man. Now, how about we got talk to Chief so that I can get some time off." Andy agreed with Matt and smiled as he walked away with him and Chief Boden to help him get some time off; time he'll explain to the rest of the house in a moment.
"So, here's the thing guys: me and Gabby have decided to get away for a while so that we can work on our marriage." That was how Matt decided to start explaining what was going to be happening, while also confusing the entire firehouse as they had not idea that they could see that coming. Hell, not even Boden saw that coming. "Sorry, what? You just told me back there that you just want time to take Gabby on a honeymoon?" Matt nodded as he wrapped his arm around Gabby, as that was something he wanted to do as well; only to grab Gabby's hand when she placed it in his lap. "I want to do that as well, but there's some things you all don't exactly know." Gabby agreed with Matt when she saw him turn his head to look at her. "Gabby, do you want to tell them why you left in the first place? You know, the one that has to deal with the medical side." Gabby thought about it, before nodding as she turned her head to look at all of their friends (family) again. "You guys remember when I was pregnant in 2015?" Looking at his Captain, Darren Ritter was surprised. "Captain, you have a kid." Looking at Matt, Gabby was confused as to who the new guy was.
So, he decided to tell his wife precisely who he was. "He's the new candidate on Engine 51." Gabby agreed with Matt, only to let him explain to Ritter what she meant. "Ritter, this is my wife, Gabriela Casey. Gabby, that's Darren Ritter, the new Candidate on Engine 51." Gabby nodded as she waved at Ritter. "The truth is, Ritter, me and Gabby did get pregnant in the past; but it turned out that the baby wasn't viable." Gabby agreed with Matt, only to take a breath. "Well, what you don't know is that it created an aneurysm…an aneurysm which led to us having a big fight earlier this year about whether or not we should have a kid. Though, we did end up getting pregnant." Taking a breath, Gabby looked down; meanwhile, Herrmann got concerned. "Herrmann, I want to thank you for sending me that video all those years ago, as it really helped me out when I learned that I miscarried over the summer." Herrmann agreed with Gabby. "I'm glad that I was still a help to you all these years later." Matt agreed with Herrmann, only to smile as he turned his head and pressed his lips to Gabby's forehead. "It gives me comfort that she had part of her family with her during that time."
Herrmann agreed with Matt. "How are you dealing with the news, Casey? I know you always wanted to be a dad." Matt sighed as he looked at Gabby. "Honestly, I'm just glad that Gabby's still here. The thing about the miscarriage in 2015 is that it created an aneurysm…which could've killed Gabby had it burst while she was pregnant." And the moment Matt mentioned that, everybody was scared. "So, to say that I'm grateful to be here is an understatement. I didn't know whether me and Matt would ever get a chance to be together again." Matt agreed with his wife, only to stroke her cheek as he wiped away a tear from her eye. "Forever, babe." Boden agreed with Matt, well aware that the two of them are going to be together for a while. "Gabby, I'm sorry that you had to deal with that. Are you okay?" Matt nodded. "I'm feeling better now. But still, I wouldn't mind getting a bit of time off with Matt." Andy agreed with Gabby as well. "I think that you guys deserve it. Let Matt make it up to you." Matt looked at his best friend when he said that. "Oh, shut up Casey. I know what you said to her, and we both know that you screwed up when you said those things." Gabby agreed.
Though, she also decided to defend Matt. "Andy, are you really in a place to judge when you've slept on our couch more times than I want to count? By the way, why do you always come to our place when Kelly isn't married!" Matt then looked at Andy. "Yeah, why do you always come over to my place?" Andy laughed. "Because you guys don't have sex when you have guests, Kelly and Stella do." Kelly and Stella then turned their heads to look at Andy. "Andy!" Matt laughed, as he knew that Andy didn't have a filter. "Guys, did you really expect Andy not to say something like that? The dude literally has no filter." Andy agreed with Matt. "Though, I do have one when I'm working as a Lieutenant. Speaking of which, if you're leaving…" Boden agreed with Andy. "Yes, you will be put in charge of Truck 81, meaning you'll be a full Lieutenant." Andy agreed with Boden and smirked as he turned his head to look at Kelly. "Means that I'll finally be just as senior as you and Matt." Kelly laughed as Andy said that. "Dude, I still have like a decade on you as a Lieutenant." Matt then went to add on. "And I haven't been the same rank as Kelly in over a year when I was promoted to Captain."
Kelly and Andy both agreed with Matt as he said that, while Gabby turned her head to look at Sylvie another time; after all, she still didn't feel like she trusted her. Though, she could at least keep the peace. The last thing Boden needed was for them to get in a fight here at the firehouse. Right now, she was going to be the bigger woman and make sure that everything was peaceful here at the house. Plus, the last thing she wanted to do was add any more drama to this place. So, she decided not to say anything else.
A Couple Hours Later - Standing in her and Matt's room shortly after getting back from having breakfast at the firehouse (and making sure that Boden got Matt some time off), Gabby let out a sigh of relief as it felt nice to be home; especially after how weird it felt being at the firehouse again. Sure, it was the same place as earlier this year when she was still there, but it also felt different because of everything that went down earlier in the year: the fight between her and Matt, and the fight she had with Sylvie. God, just the fact that she and Sylvie were in the same room for a while still bothered her. But now that she was home, she finally felt happy and relaxed; at least, that was what Matt thought. "You seem a little more relaxed now that we're home." Turning around to look at Matt, Gabby agreed with him as she did feel much more relaxed now. "Yeah. It was tense at the firehouse." Matt agreed with Gabby as he made his way over to her and placed his hands on her hips, only to tug her body against his chest this afternoon. Meanwhile, Gabby placed her hands on his back as she stared up into his eyes. "Thanks for staying by my side today." Matt agreed.
Not that there was anywhere else he'd rather be today, as he knew that she was going to be nervous the entire time they were at the firehouse. "Gabby, I already knew you were going to be nervous. Hell, I was truly surprised that you even wanted to go to the firehouse. Yet, I'm proud that you did. You did a great job there." Gabby agreed with Matt and smiled as she wrapped her arms around his back and leaned in to kiss him softly. "I'm not going to lie though; it's going to be nice to get out on the road with you. That's still the plan, right?" Matt agreed with Gabby and smiled, as that most certainly is the plan: they're going to get away together as they take a nice road trip. "It's why we stopped at the RV place on the way here: so that I could get the RV here for when we pack. I want to take our time to pack and not rush it. This is our time to take it easy and relax, enjoy this as a honeymoon." Smiling, Gabby agreed with Matt as she wrapped her arms around him. Meanwhile, Matt leaned in and kissed her softly once more this afternoon. In the process, Gabby took things nice and slow with Matt, while also smiling as they got ready to go on a nice trip together.