#911scoc

911 POC Week 2020

✨911/911: Lone Star PoC Appreciation Week ✨

A week long event starting from August 1st to the 7th to celebrate the wonderful, diverse and incredibly wonderful characters of color from fox’s 911 & 911: Lone Star. This week is a celebration of diversity of the cast, from main characters to brave and beautiful secondary characters. This will be a safe and fun space to support and highlight the wonderful work from Actors/Actresses of color.

All gifs, edits, artwork are welcomed. FIcs must primarily be centered around a PoC to be included. To participate and to make it easier to share your works please tag me directly in your creations and/or use the #911spocappreciationweek #911scoc or #911spoc

The following are prompts for the 7 days.

Day 1// 911 Favorite Main Character of Color Appreciation (ie, Hen, Athena, Eddie or Chim)

Day 2 // Lone Star Favorite Main Character of Color Appreciation (ie, Marjan, Grace, Paul, Mateo or Carlos)

Day 3 // Favorite Secondary Character of Color Appreciation

Day 4// Celebrating the Future aka favorite kid of color appreciation (ie. Christopher, Denny, Harry etc)

Day 5// Celebrating fierce friends aka favorite friendship between characters of color

Day 6// Celebrating the LGBTQ+ Characters of Color

Day 7// Cast Appreciation or Free Choice

Please reblog and share to spread the word. If you have any questions or concerns please send a message here or @buttercupstrand

For @911scharactersofcolor day 7: free choice

Read on ao3

“You heading home, Reyes?” An officer asks as he walks past Carlos’s desk. 

Carlos sighs and looks at the clock, “Unfortunately no. Not for another hour.” He says goodbye to the officer and turns back to his desk. His fingers clack on the keyboard, eyes darting to the clock every few seconds. The minutes slug by, each lasting longer than the one before. 

All Carlos wants to do is go home where he knows TK is cooking a delicious meal for him. The pair haven’t moved in yet, but after the solar flare, they’ve gotten a lot closer and are now officially boyfriends. On days when TK has off and Carlos has to work, more often than not, Carlos will come home and find TK in his kitchen and a homemade meal on the table. Carlos adores the light blush that covers TK’s cheeks whenever Carlos compliments him or his cooking. 

As Carlos’s thoughts turn from the pressing work in front of him to his handsome boyfriend and how much he really could just use a hug right now. Thankfully as he thinks about TK, the minutes roll faster and in no time, Carlos is packing his things and hopping into his car. He shoots off a text to TK telling him that he’s on his way home and just as he’s back out of his parking spot, he receives a smiley emoji back. 

Carlos gets home, finding TK’s car parked outside on the street. When he opens the door he is greeted by homey smells of freshly cooked food. He sheds his shoes and dumps his back on the floor, padding into the kitchen. TK is just setting plates onto the table and he looks with a wide smile at the sight of his boyfriend. 

“How was work?” 

Carlos just sighs as he pulls TK into a close hug, sighing softly. He relishes the feeling of TK in his arms, a welcome comfort after his long day. “That good, huh?” TK laughs lightly into Carlos’s ear but doesn’t move out of his arms. 

Carlos groans, “You have no idea.” 

“Come on,” TK squeezes Carlos’s arm. “Let’s eat before it gets cold.”

Much like their failed first date, they sit across from each other at the dining table. Occasionally, Carlos will squeeze TK’s hand, or wrap his ankle around his boyfriend’s as they talk. He tells TK all about his hellish day at work and the unfortunate fact that he’s stuck riding the desk for the next two weeks. In turn, TK tells him about his day off at home with Owen. Apparently Owen decided it was the perfect day to clean their house top to bottom, much to TK chagrin. 

Carlos laughs at his boyfriend’s misery. 

After dinner, Carlos curls up on the couch with TK’s head in his lap as they watch some tv. With TK’s eyes fixed on the screen, Carlos watches his boyfriend as he rhythmically drags his fingers through his hair. Over the years, Carlos has had a few boyfriends, only two that he stayed with for more than a year and even though his relationship with TK is new, he feels something he’s never felt before. There’s this sort of clenching in his stomach whenever TK leans in to kiss him and when TK leans his head on his shoulder, eyes closing sleepily. 

When he looks at TK in his lap, a soft smile comes across his face. He moves his hand from TK’s hair onto his cheek, gently running his thumb along TK’s cheekbone. TK leans into the touch, turning to look up at him with soft eyes. 

“Why are you watching me?” TK asks, his voice quiet. 

“How can I not?” Carlos counters. He traces his thumb along TK’s lip before leaning down and kissing him softly, TK sitting up to make it easier. 

“I love you,” TK says as they pull apart. A grin stretches across Carlos’s face. TK’s never told him that before. 

“Yeah?” Carlos asks with a sly smile as he leans back towards him, their noses barely brushing. 

“Yeah,” TK breathes. 

911 POC Week 2020

911 POC Week: Day 3

For @911scharactersofcolor day 2: Lone star favorite main character of color 

TW: referenced use of the r word

Read on ao3

Grace and Judd are softly conversing over dinner, catching each other up on their day and their plans for the weekend coming up. To Grace, it feels like forever since they’ve both been able to sit down and have dinner together. Their quiet night in is shortly interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

Grace pats Judd’s hand as she stands, “I got it.” 

When she opens the door she sees Mateo standing in the doorway. The young man is shivering as the rain pummels down on him, his teeth chatter. She frowns, she’s met her husband’s coworkers on several occasions but she has no clue why Mateo would show up at their door at night in the pouring rain. But Grace is not one to leave someone on her porch so she quickly steps aside and ushers him in. He stands on the doormat, shivering and dripping water. 

“I’ll go get you a towel, honey,” Grace pats his shoulder and walks briskly to the hall closet.

“Who’s here, Gracie?” Judd calls from the dining room. 

“Mateo,” she tells him as she walks back to the doorway with a towel in arms. She smiles gently at him as she wraps the towel around his shoulders, “Does that feel better?” 

He nods, “Thanks, Mrs. Ryder.”

She waves him off, “Call me Grace. Any friend of Judd’s is a friend of mine.” 

Speaking of the devil, Judd walks into the hall, his frown deepening with concern when he sees Mateo, “Mateo, what are you doing here?” 

He wraps the blanket closer around himself and looks down at his feet, “I-I didn’t know where to go.” 

“Yeah you did,” Judd says, squeezing his shoulder. “Right here. Come on in, we’re eating dinner. Grace always cooks for four instead of two.” 

“That’s cause you eat like three people,” Grace laughs. Mateo smiles slightly at the banter.

“Only because your cooking is so good,” Judd wraps an arm around her waist and kisses her cheek. Grace and Judd lead Mateo into the dining room, Grace fixing him a plate while Judd fetches a pile of warm clothes from the closet. 

Grace smiles kindly at Mateo as he starts nibbling on the plate in front of him, “My mama told me that there’s nothing a good meal can’t fix. I never believed her even when I was little, a good meal can’t solve all the problems of the world, but it can help bring people together and make people feel warmer and safer.” 

“That’s pretty smart.” 

“Why thank you,” Grace smiles. “I’d like to think so.” The three of them eat for a little while longer in silence before Grace says, “Listen, we’re not going to make you tell us why you’re here, anyone from the 126 is welcome here any time of day, no questions asked. But I want you to know that if you do want to talk about anything, Judd and I are both very good listeners.”

Mateo looks at Judd, “How’d you fool her into thinking you’re a good listener?” 

Judd rolls his eyes, “Okay, Chavez.” Grace chuckles as she sips her wine. She wasn’t sure about the new 126 at first, but now she couldn’t be more sure. Her husband has found a family in them, something Grace was worried he’d never have again. But here’s Mateo teasing him like a little brother and she’s witnessed him act the same way with all of the others. It’s a shame that Judd’s the youngest of his siblings, he would have been a fantastic older brother.

Once all of the dishes are in the dishwasher, Grace shows Mateo to the bathroom, “Here, get changed, take a hot shower if you need one.” 

“Thank you, Grace,” Mateo says. 

“Of course, honey.” 

She smiles at him and once the door is closed behind him, she meets Judd in the living room. “You’re really worried about him,” she says as she sinks onto the couch beside him. 

Judd sighs, “Yeah. He’s...not fragile, just more sensitive than the rest of the team. He keeps to himself a lot so I’m-I’m concerned about what could have happened.” 

Grace scratches gently at the nape of Judd’s neck, “Just don’t push okay? If he wants to talk about it, listen, but don’t push.” 

“Gracie,” Judd looks at his wife, “when have you ever known me to voluntarily talk about feelings?” 

Grace laughs lightly and leans into his shoulder. She catches movement out of the corner of her eye and sees Mateo walk into the living room, nearly drowning in one of Judd’s t-shirts and sweatpants. “Come sit down, sweetie,” Grace smiles at him and pushes Judd’s shoulder to get him to move down and make room for him. 

He sits down hesitantly and looks at his feet, “I don’t really want to talk about it.” 

“That’s okay,” Judd assures him. “We can just watch some tv and then we’ll make up the guest room-”

“You don’t have to do that,” Mateo interjects. “I can catch a cab home.” 

“Nonsense,” Grace shakes her head. “You’re going to stay the night and let me make you a big breakfast, okay?” 

“It’s best not to cross her,” Judd advises. 

Mateo nods wisely and softly thanks them both again. The three of them settle back against the couch and Judd clicks on the tv. Grace keeps an eye out for Mateo out of the corner of her eye and she knows that Judd is doing the same. Mateo sits with his knees curled up to his chest. Eventually, during one of the commercials, Mateo gently clears his throat and Judd mutes the tv. 

Mateo shifts, “Um, my dad called me. He hasn’t talked to me since I moved out, but he saw me on the news at that call yesterday. He-” Mateo takes a long breath. “He only called me to tell me that he’s never going to be proud of me and that I’ll always be dumb and ret-”

“Don’t say that,” Grace cuts in before Mateo can repeat the awful word his father called him. 

Mateo shakes his head, “I hung up on him and I started running to clear my head and then it started raining and I was miles away from my apartment and I know that you guys were close so I came here.” 

Grace squeezes his knee, “I’m glad you came here, Mateo. You’re family, we’ll always be here if you need us.”

For @911scharactersofcolor day 3: favorite secondary character of color 

Read on ao3 Micheal is working on the kitchen counter in the dim lights from the kitchen. The only sound in the apartment is the soft hum of the refrigerator and the scratch of his pencil. His kids’ soft snores come from the bedroom. He smiles to himself. He loves those kids more than words could ever comprehend. 

He can still remember the first time he held May in his arms. He was suddenly filled with a volume of love he didn’t know was possible. She looked up at him with her big brown eyes and he was in love. And now she’s all grown up. His little girl is moving away and starting a new life in college. If he’s honest, Micheal isn’t sure he’s ready for that. He wants to protect his kids more than anything in the world and May about to fly the nest is making him more than a little nervous. 

But in a bittersweet way, he’s happy. His cancer is getting better and he knows he’s going to live a full life where he gets to see both of his kids grow up into the kind and intelligent people he knows they are. 

“Dad?” 

Micheal looks up and sees May walking into the kitchen dressed in her pajamas, one of his old company t-shirts and flannel pants.

“Hi, May-May.” She smiles at the nickname as he folds up his work, making room for her to sit next to him. “Aren’t you supposed to be asleep?” 

She shrugs, “Yeah. So are you.”

“I’m an adult,” he reminds her. “Last I recall, there’s still a week until your birthday.” May rolls her eyes. Micheal looks at her and sees her hands fidgeting under the counter. “What’s going on? It’s not like you to be up in the middle of the night.” 

May sighs, “I guess I’ve got something on my mind that I wanted to talk to you about.” 

Micheal turns, giving his daughter his full attention. “Whatever it is you can tell me, you know that.” 

May nods and takes a deep breath. She brings her hands to rest on the cold counter, her fingers tapping nervously. “How did you know that you were gay?” 

“Oh, uh…” Of everything his daughter could ask him, Micheal hadn’t been expecting that. “I guess I’ve always known. There wasn’t really a moment that I knew or anything.” He frowns, “Is this about me and your mother-”

“It’s about me,” May jumps in suddenly. She freezes for a second and looks down at her lap, shoulders curling in on herself protectively.

Micheal softens immediately. He remembers the fear and anxiety he felt when he first told someone he was gay. He never wants either of his children to ever feel like that, but he knows he can’t protect them from it.

“I’m scared,” she confesses, her voice soft. May fixes Micheal with a pleading look as if begging him to make sense of everything turning in her mind. “Is that normal? I don’t think I’m like what everyone thinks I am. I-I think I’m like you.” 

Micheal smiles reassuringly at her, “Hey, it’s okay, May. It’s normal to be scared while you’re figuring yourself out. Do you want to talk about it?”

May takes a deep breath and nods hesitantly. “There’s this girl and-and I get the same fluttering in my chest and the same nerves that I felt when I started going out with Darius. But I really liked Darius so I don’t think I’m like Hen and, dad,” May sighs, “I’m really confused.” 

Micheal puts an arm around her and pulls his daughter to lean against his chest, “I know that feeling. Listen, I want you to know that it’s okay if you pick a label and it doesn’t fit down the line that it’s okay to change it. And if you don’t want a label that’s okay too, but I am going to be here for you no matter what.” 

May looks up at Micheal with tears in her eyes, “You promise?” 

“Come here, sweetie,” Micheal pulls May into a hug, one hand resting on the back of her head. “I swear to you that I will be here for you no matter what. I will always be in your corner to talk about whatever you need.” 

“So it’s okay if I’m like you?” She looks up at him with those same big brown eyes that captured his heart in the hospital room. 

“Of course it is,” Micheal assures her. “I’d be a hypocrite to say otherwise.”

“I love you, dad.” 

“Love you too, May-May.” Micheal kisses her head, “Try to get some sleep okay?” May nods and as she walks back to her bedroom, Micheal feels a swell of pride in his chest for the relationship he’s built with his daughter, that she feels comfortable enough and safe enough to talk with him about these things. 

For @911scharactersofcolor day 5: Favorite friendship between characters of color 

Read on ao3 The call didn’t end well. Only one of the three victims made it into the ambulance. Mateo is silent the whole way back to the station, just staring out the window with a vacant expression. When they get back to the station, Owen tells them all to go take a breather while he starts cooking lunch and Mateo just vanishes. 

After Marjan’s turnout coat is hung up neatly, she looks around the locker room and turns to Paul, “Did you see where Mateo went?” 

Paul looks around too and frowns, “I’m not sure.”

“Okay.” She thanks him and walks out of the locker room. Marjan doesn’t find Mateo in the kitchen, the living room, the bay, the bunks, or anywhere else in the station. Their shift doesn’t end for another four hours so he couldn’t have left. 

She’s about to give up when she sees the door to the supply closet is slightly ajar. That’s not something completely out of the ordinary, maybe Michelle’s team just needs to restock the ambulance. But she’s run out of places to look for the youngest firefighter so she pushes the door open and walks inside. 

The supply closet is more like a supply room with shelves full of extra materials to stock the trucks and such. The overhead lights are off and the room smells like dust. At first, she doesn’t see Mateo, but as she walks deeper inside she finds him curled up by the only window in the room, sitting on the windowsill. Buttercup is sitting on the ground beside him, head on his leg, whining softly as Mateo scratches his head. 

He stares out the window, down at the parking lot and Marjan can see unshed tears in his eyes.

Marjan makes sure to make noise as she approaches so she doesn’t startle him. “Supply closet’s a good choice. Hardly anyone comes in here and never for very long.” She sits down on the ledge with him, scratching behind Buttercup’s ear.

“Leave me alone.” Mateo doesn’t look at her. 

“I don’t think I should,” Marjan tells him. She looks out the window as well. “Back in Florida, my place was the roof. No one would ever find me up there, not that they ever wanted to. I could lay there on the roof and just breathe, let everything that happened at the calls just melt away in the sun.” 

“How can you do that?” Mateo asks quietly, picking at a thread on his pants.

“What?” 

“Just let go? How can you forget their faces?” As he says that, the tears in Mateo’s eyes grow thicker, but don’t fall. 

Marjan sighs, “I don’t. I just...I just tell myself that I did everything I could do to save them and I pray. I pray that the people I couldn’t help find rest.” She touches his hand, “I know it’s hard and I don’t want to tell that it gets easier, because it doesn’t. But it does get easier to let them go.”

Mateo sniffs and seems to curl even more in on himself, “I don’t think I believe in any god.” 

“You don’t have to,” Marjan assures him. “But find something that gives you peace of mind. Talk to a counselor, go to group therapy.” Mateo makes a face at that one. “It’s not that bad, there are a few good ones for first responders. But my point is there are people here to help you. And if that seems too intimidating then let us have you back. We’re a team, we look out for each other.” 

“Thank you,” he says softly.

“Can I give you a hug?” Marjan asks. She waits for Mateo to nod before leaning over and hugging him tightly. “It’s going to be okay.” 

“Thank you,” Mateo whispers into her shoulder. A few moments later, Mateo pulls back and wipes his eyes. Buttercup nudges his hand and he laughs as he pets his head. 

“Cap’s making lunch, why don’t you come down and eat?” Marjan smiles when Mateo agrees and follows her out of the closet. When they get down to the kitchen, Paul pulls Mateo into a side hug while Judd ruffles his hair. 

“You okay, kid?” Owen asks as he passes Mateo a plate.