Remember Me

“Wen!” I looked up, smiling happily as he jogged into the dark room. I still sat on the floor; I couldn’t get up, but he didn’t seem to mind. He knelt in front of me and grabbed my cheeks, pulling me close and pressing a passionate kiss to my lips. I grinned and kissed him back, wrapping both arms around his neck. I was happy to have him in my arms again.

“I’m so happy to see you,” I mumbled, pulling away. He chuckled and sat back, reaching down and gently rubbing the side of my left leg. He nodded slowly.

“I couldn’t be happier that I’ve had this time with you…” he murmured back, his voice choked with emotion. I frowned, tilting his chin up with the tips of my fingers.

“Hey… What do you mean…? We have lots of time,” I assured him with a smile. He shook his head slowly, biting his lip and trying to smile back. But instead, the smile was filled with sadness. His eyes glazed over.

“No, Wen… Our time’s up,” he whispered shakily. “This is the last time I get to see you like this.” I shook my head.

“No… No, I don’t understand, why? Why are you saying that?” I protested, grabbing onto the thick shoulders of his bunker coat. He leaned in and kissed me, the kiss sweet and soft and loving. Something about the kiss was shaky, was pleading, as if it was our last. “Kelly, please...” I mumbled against his lips, nerves taking over. I couldn’t bear to think that he was right.

“I just…. I love you, Wen,” he told me, as he took in a shaky breath. His eyes widened as two doors behind us opened. “I have to go,” he said to me, his voice breaking.

“No, no, no, wait!” I grabbed at him as he stood, walking backwards. I immediately tried to stand, tried to follow after him, anything to stay with him. But I only had one foot; one leg to stand on. I fell forward, hitting the floor with a thud. I looked up and reached out for him. “No! Kelly!”

“I love you, Wen!” he shouted as the bright light of the open doors began to envelope him.

Tears blurred my vision. “No! You can’t go…!”

But he was gone with a slam of the doors and a whisking of hot air across my face. He was gone.

“462!” I heard shouts. Voices called for help, scuffing of the linoleum floors as nurses’ feet jogged to a room just a few doors down. I snapped awake, sitting up.

“Helen!” I yelled. Breathless, she came in and immediately came to me, pressing me by both shoulders back down into the bed.

“You need to rest, Wendy,” she commanded, trying to tuck me back into the covers. I frowned, shaking my head.

“No! No, what’s going on? Who’s all this for? I want to know!” I pushed against her, trying to sit up. She kept pushing back.

“I can’t tell you, you just have to stay here!”

“Please, Helen!” I pleaded, “I need your help.” At those words, her gentle but firm pushing came to a stop. She looked down at me, my eyes begging. I didn’t want it to be who I thought it was. “Just tell me. Who is it…?”

“Kelly.” My heart stopped.

“Oh no…” Both of my hands went to my head, pushing my hair back in panic.

“His heart just isn’t-” I stopped her, throwing my covers away and desperately grabbing for my crutches.

“Help me, Helen!” I begged, trying to lift myself up onto the crutches, carelessly and hurriedly. I breathed quickly and heavily, falling to the side and feeling her arms catch me. She didn’t acknowledge the fall, giving in and sighing heavily.

“Alright, alright,” she frowned, helping me along out of the room. I was breathing too fast to face the tears that threatened to spill. I’d just found him, and he was being taken away in both worlds. I couldn’t bear it. It would kill me.

I crutched into the room, my eyes landing on a doctor and three nurses around Kelly, my mom and Matt standing off to the corner. I couldn’t even bring myself to ask why she was in there, only shoving my way past two of the nurses. “Kelly!” I called. The doctor and nurses ignored me, injecting something into his IV. They stopped and moved back from him, one of the nurses pressing her fingers to his pulse at his neck. He was pale, and the machines were all beeping madly. “Oh, god…” I whimpered, shaking my head. I felt a hand on my back. “Kelly…”

“We just have to see if the medication takes,” the doctor said gruffly, his eyes glued to the heart monitor. I moved to his side, sitting myself down into the chair beside his bed. Helen quietly took my crutches and I reached out, grabbing his hand in both of mine. I pressed his forearm into my chest and cried silently, staring down at his sleeping face.

“Pl-Please…” I whispered. “I need you…” He laid there so peacefully, most of his skin healed from the burns that’d been there before, creeping up his arms and chest. He was still so beautiful to me, and so much of me felt broken as I recalled his words in the dream. ”No, Wen… Our time’s up.” “You’re my only memory…” I mumbled, closing my eyes and pressing a chaste kiss to his palm. I cried softly into his skin.

And then his finger twitched. My trembles slowed as I peeled my eyes open, unsure if what I felt was real. Sniffling quietly, I sat back and looked to his face. “Kelly…?” His face didn’t respond. Was it in my head?

But again, his fingers twitched, and the doctor’s words to his nurses quickly changed in tone. They started moving around him again, checking each vital manually. I moved out of their way, still grasping tightly to his hand. The machines stopped beeping the way they were before, back to the calm rhythm they normally had. I heard Matt whisper a subtle “Shit.”

“Oh my god,” I whispered as his eyelids flickered. Time stopped, my heart slowing as his hand moved against my cheek and his eyes pulled open. Breathing slowly, he stared straight at me and blinked. His lips parted and he furrowed his brows, a confusion and relief flowing over his face.

“W-Wen…?” his voice spoke, rough from disuse, and suddenly… I froze.

“What did you say?” I asked. “Wendy! Kiss your mother goodbye, for heaven’s sake!” her voice chuckled, disbelieving. I turned from my boyfriend, all handsome in his tux and bright aqua cummerbund, hugging and kissing my beautiful mother goodbye.

“Love you, mom!” I called, jumping into the car with him.

“Wendy, are you okay?” I turned to her. My mom, my beautiful mom, stood there next to Casey. Matt Casey. “Be mine forever…?” he whispered, smiling down at me with his incredible eyes glowing in the prom night lighting. He lifted a small, silver ring between us. I giggled a “yes” and threw my arms around him, happy as could be.

“Hey, you! Yeah, you!” his voice shouted across the gorgeous reception hall. I laughed, looking over as Matt came jogging to where I sat at my table with Kelly.

“What?!” I giggled as he hugged me tightly, setting down my champagne glass. God forbid the champagne spill on the bright ivory of my gown.

“I wanted to congratulate you formally, Mrs. Severide,” he smiled down at me.

“Well thank you, Mr. Casey. You make a hell of a best man,” I murmured gratefully, hugging him tightly back.

“Oh… Oh my god..!” I sputtered, my eyes locking with Matt’s. He was tired, downtrodden after the hour’s events, but a smile poured onto his face as he realized what was happening. Kelly’s hand tightened around mine. I looked back at him. “Kelly!”

“Hey, everyone!” I greeted as I came through the two front doors with Kelly holding tightly to my nervous shaking hand. “The 51 Flames Bar and Grill is officially…. open!” I called, smiling happily as our small crowd piled into the brand new restaurant. Laughter filled the air around us and I fell into Kelly’s arms with a grin on my lips not to be rivaled.

“You did it,” he mumbled into my ear. “I told you so.”

I jumped forward, wrapping him in a hug and crying tears of joy for the first time in a long time - a long time that I could remember.

“Oh god, honey!” my mom cried, running over. She enveloped me in a hug and laughed into my hair as a happy, exhausted, and confused Kelly gingerly kissed my cheek.

Helen was on the phone with Dr. Coleman before I knew it, and Matt was on the phone with the guys, demanding that they run over as soon as they possibly could. I couldn’t tear my focus from Kelly.

“I love you so much,” I blubbered, laughing softly and shaking my head. He smiled happily, reaching carefully up and brushing a happy tear from my cheek with his thumb. And the words he uttered would make my heart soar.

“You opened your eyes…” he said. Glancing down, he took my hand and pointed to the empty line on my finger.

“You…” I trailed off. “The… dreams?” I asked. No one could hear us, they were all still bustling with excitement. He slowly nodded his head.

“You sure showed them,” he chuckled, nodding his head toward the ceiling. I was reminded of the bright, white light that took him in the end of the last dream. My jaw went slack.

“Oh! By the way,” Casey interrupted, stepping forward as he noticed Kelly and I staring at my left hand. “You had me hold onto it the day you guys… Well… Anyway, you were washing some stuff up and asked me to hold this for you.” He pulled a small, silver ring from his pocket, one I now remembered to be adorned with a beautiful diamond in the center, and handed it to my husband.

“How did…” I started in disbelief. He chuckled softly.

“I’m a hell of a best man, remember?” he grinned, kissing the side of my head and rubbing my back. I sniffled as Kelly gently slid that promise ring onto my finger for the third time. My hand went to my heart and I shook my head.

“This… is amazing…” I whispered. Kelly squeezed my hand as tight as he could, though it wasn’t much. Then, he lifted his head, and his gaze fell to my legs. I felt my heart skip a beat, and my cheeks burned for a moment. I tried to meet his eyes, but I could barely keep them there.

He swallowed audibly and breathed out, looking back up into my eyes. “This is amazing, Wen,” he mumbled. “You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” Shocked at his words, I looked from my stump to my husband’s honest face, not sure what to say. Feet began to tumble into the room, and the familiar faces of Dawson, the Chief, Mouch, Herrmann, Mills, Otis, and Joe took the place of the blank white space. All of them surprised to see me where I sat with my husband.

I turned to Kelly and smiled, shaking my head and leaning down to softly kiss his lips. “I told you our time couldn’t be up,” I mumbled.

He smiled softly. “And you were right…” Kelly held me close to him. “But the amazing thing to me is…” I pulled back enough to see his eyes as they grinned up at me. “You heard me...”

The amazing thing to me was… I remembered him.