Grey’s Anatomy Stars Kevin McKidd and Kim Raver share insight into how their on-screen romance helped them build a strong friendship when the camera stops rolling.

The actors joined other cast members onstage at a D23 fan event in Anaheim, California, on Saturday, August 10, and reflected on how their characters’ decades-long relationship (which began off-screen when they served overseas in the military) blossomed into a real-life friendship.

McKidd, 51, proved this when he lent his co-star his jacket during the panel and recognized from her body language that she was cold.

“I was shaking a little bit,” the 55-year-old raver told the audience after the sweet gesture while wearing the jacket over her shoulders.

She thought that if she continued to “change,” she might feel better, and McKidd, who plays her character Teddy Altman’s husband in “The Last Man,” Grey’snoticed.

“We worked together so much that he noticed (my body language),” Raver said after telling McKidd she was “freezing.”

“I feel so incredibly safe (working with McKidd),” she admitted, calling the actor her “screen husband.”

She attributed the dynamic of the two characters in part to the two already being married and raising a blended family after going through “intense” moments in their relationship.

“It’s really nice to have a great, solid foundation to work from as well,” Raver said.

McKidd also expressed his views on their relationship.

“It feels like a safe place that we created as actors in this relationship,” he said. “Teddy and Owen met in combat and in war and in a military environment, and I think the theme of their relationship was trauma. And they find in each other a place where they can heal … and give each other warmth and security.”

He patted Raver on the shoulder as the D23 crowd let out a chorus of “ohs” in response to the sweet moment.

As fans will recall, Meredith (Ellen Pompeo, who will appear in seven episodes of the show’s upcoming season, according to PEOPLE) quit her job at the hospital after Catherine Fox (Debbie Allen) discovered her secret Alzheimer’s research at the end of season 20. Teddy, Amelia Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone) and Owen also found themselves in the crosshairs of the controversy.

McKidd previously told PEOPLE in an exclusive interview on the red carpet at the premiere of his latest film: It ends with us, that Teddy and Owen have “a rocky road” ahead of them when they return to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital after this ordeal.

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“I can’t say much about it, but it also creates tension between Teddy and Owen,” he added. “Because some decisions have been made, but I think they’re going to fight through it. But for a brief moment, it’s a little rocky.”

As for Pompeo, 54, the actress had a reduced role in seasons 19 and 20 of the drama. However, she remained an executive producer on the series and continued to provide the opening and closing voiceover for each episode.

In April, ABC announced Grey’s Anatomy was renewed for season 21, extending its record as the network’s longest-running primetime medical drama and longest-running primetime scripted series.

“Press (twenty-one) on Epi! 😉 #GreysAnatomy will be returning for another season on ABC!” read a post on the show’s official Instagram page.

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Grey’s Anatomy Season 21 premieres on September 26 at 10:00 p.m. ET on ABC.