#firefighter reader

“Jazz, Gran, you take floor three, Shadow and I have this one. Check in with each cleared apartment, don’t waste any time.”

The pair nodded and left at the entrance to the third floor while you continued on. You cleared five units before hitting trouble. 

“Miss, can you hear me?”

The girl couldn’t respond. She was shaking and crying, curled up in the corner of what you guessed was her bedroom. 

“I need you to come with me.” You glanced back. “Shadow, clear the rest of the unit and keep moving, I’ll be right behind you once she’s out.”

“Are you sure, Dex? I can-”

“I’ve got this, you keep going.”

He gave a hesitant nod and moved on. 

You looked back and knelt down in front of the girl. 

“My name is Dex, can you tell me your name?”

She still didn’t answer, so you moved a little closer. Just as you reached out, she lunged forward, throwing you off balance and knocking you to the floor. She straddled you before you could process what was happening and threw off your helmet. 

“You can’t make me stay! I won’t!”

“I’m trying-” You grunted and tried to keep her hands from grabbing at your mask. “I’m not trying to make you stay, miss! There’s a fire; we need to go!”

She screamed in your face and ripped off your mask, sending a wave of hot, smoky air across your face. You tried again to grab her hands and stop her, but her nails raked across your exposed face and it erupted in pain. 

Shadow, Jazz, and Gran were all speaking over your radio, calling each cleared unit. When you offered no response, Shadow tried again. 

“Dex, you good? You get the girl out?”

“Get off me!”

You thrashed around, but the heavy gear you wore made it difficult to get out from under her. 

“Dex, what’s going on?”

She was still screaming about something you couldn’t understand and swiping at you. You could tell enough to know you didn’t want to hurt her, but you were low on options as the room continued to grow hotter. Your train of thought stopped dead when her fist connected with your face, a sloppy but solid hit. 

Your head slammed back into the floor at the impact and you finally gave in. Your hand scrambled for a grip on your fallen helmet and you swung at her head.

It didn’t take her down, but it knocked her aside enough for you to move out of her reach. You fumbled to your feet and raised your hands in a placating gesture. 

“I’m just going to reach for my mask. Don’t attack me again.”

You kept your eyes on her as you slowly reached down, but your vision was getting a little hazy. You grabbed the mask and fixed it back over your face. 

“I am not here to hurt you. This building is on fire and it’s my job to get everyone out. Do you understand that?”

“I don’t want to stay. They can’t make me stay!”

“You can go, right now. Just follow me, yeah?”

She watched as you moved back out of the bedroom and headed for the door. You gave her a wide berth, and she followed warily a few feet behind you. 

“Dex!!”

“I’m here, sorry. I’ve got another one coming down, female, late twenties. She’s got something going on, but I don’t know what.”

You and the young woman went for the stairs and she started down first. You stayed about half a flight behind her to avoid another fight. When Shadow came over the radio again, you paused. The woman kept going. 

“Dex, I have a door I can’t open. I think there’s someone inside. I’m at unit 407.”

“Copy that, I’ll be right there.” You looked down to the woman. “Keep going, miss! There will be emergency services outside to help you!”

You went back up the stairs to the top floor and met Shadow at the unit. The front door was open, but the first bedroom was locked. 

“Dex, what the hell happened to you?”

“Don’t worry about it, I’ll get it checked out later.” You pounded on the door with one fist. “Pittsburgh Fire! Anyone in there?”

You listened. A small voice answered. 

“Help!”

It was faint, frail. You nodded to Shadow and braced yourself before kicking the door in. The doorframe splintered, giving way under your effort. 

“Let’s get you out of here, miss.”

“Thank you, young man.” The little old woman smiled sweetly at you both and allowed Shadow to help her to her feet. 

You led the way back out of the apartment and back to the stairwell again. 

“Get her down. I think we’ve got a few units left. I’ll cover them.”

“But you-”

“I’m fine. Go.” You tried for a reassuring smile. You were pretty sure it was closer to a pained grimace.

Shadow looked hesitant, but focused on the old woman and started helping her down the stairs. He quickly realized it would take too long and asked her permission to carry her instead, which she allowed. Meanwhile, you went back and cleared the last four units. 

With each unit, your breathing got heavier and your vision got weaker. You called in each unit number and kept your focus on making sure everyone else was out. When your air ran out, you took a few labored breaths to realize it. 

By the time you got one flight down the stairs, you stopped to lean against a wall and slipped your mask off. The pain in your face continued, but the air came a little easier. You didn’t have a spare second to wonder why your alarm didn’t go off. 

You just kept walking, one heavy step after another. Your vision was blurred by the time you burst through the last door. The parking lot was chaos, overseen by an order you didn’t currently have the presence of mind to understand. You just stumbled forward into the throng of people.

“...Dex, what’s going on?”

You shook your head to clear the smoke, but that just made you dizzy. Arms wrapped around you, kept you upright. 

“Dex!”

You dropped your helmet and tried to wave off the people around you. Touch was on an expressed consent basis only, everyone on your team knew that. With all the control you could muster, you headed for your engine. 

Huh. The pavement looked a lot closer than it should. 

---

There was a mask on your face, but it was wrong. It only covered your mouth and nose. This wasn’t your mask. So why were you wearing it? And what was that annoying beeping sound?

One eye slowly blinked open, followed by the other. 

You were resting in a bed with sterile white sheets. 

There were wires and tubes connected to your arms, and a thick tube coming from the mask over your face. 

Shadow was resting at the foot of your bed, a book in his lap and his feet propped up next to yours. He looked like a mess. His reddish brown curls were pressed to one side of his head, darkened with soot. There were smears of dust on his face and his clothes were clearly a day old and heavily wrinkled. 

You slid one foot over and nudged his. He startled out of his book and dropped it on the floor as he shot to his feet. 

“Dex! Hey-” He came closer, then seemed to think better of it. “I gotta- uh-” He leaned around the curtain drawn across your room and called for a nurse. “I should call the team!”

You waved him away to do so as a nurse and doctor came into the room. 

“Good morning, Lieutenant Dexridge.” You waved softly. 

The nurse, a woman in a hijab, checked over your vitals and started removing your oxygen mask. 

“My name is Doctor Robinavich, but you can call me Robby. This lovely woman is named Perlah, she’s your nurse. Are you aware of why you’re here?”

You waited for the mask to come off before trying to answer. 

“Uh… I was on a call. Fire in an apartment building.” 

Your voice sounded almost foreign to your own ears, so rough and worn.

Perlah grabbed a thin tube and fit it into your nose, tucking both ends over your ears. 

“Now that you’re awake, we’re switching you off the non rebreather and onto what’s called a nasal cannula, that’s gonna keep fresh oxygen running into your blood. That fire did a number on you, Lieutenant.”

“Just Dex is fine.” You watched Perlah put away the mask and offered a quiet thanks. “How long was I out?”

“You were brought in yesterday afternoon, so it’s been about…” He checked his watch and did a quick guesstimate, “Eighteen hours. You’ve been asleep pretty much the whole time.”

You nodded slowly. It was only then that you noticed a plush dalmatian resting on your bed, just to the right of your knees. 

Robby talked you through the steps they’d taken when you came in. Shadow had been at your side, refusing to leave in his absolute grief. The charge nurse had resorted to manhandling him out of the room so the doctors and nurses could work properly. You’d needed a bronchoscopy, among other things, which didn’t help the aggravation in your throat. 

When you were determined to be stable, Shadow set up camp at your bedside and didn’t move once. Another crew member dropped off his backpack, which contained his book, and your pillow from the firehouse for a little extra comfort. That little effort went further than you figured they knew. 

“So… what are the chances I can get discharged today?”

Robby had settled in the rolling chair backwards, resting his arms over the back of it. Perlah made herself scarce once her work was done and Shadow returned with an exhausted sigh. He was curled up in the visitor’s chair with his knees at his chest. He watched your every move like a hawk, as if the slightest misstep would send you into cardiac arrest or something. 

“Not good. We’ll need to keep you at least one more day to make sure your lungs and throat are healing. This was a close call, Dex. You understand that, right?”

You looked down and realized Shadow was nudging the stuffed animal closer to your shaking hands. 

“I’ll be fine though, right doc? If not today or tomorrow, then next week. Or next month. I can keep fighting fires and leading my team.”

Robby sighed and ran a hand down his face. 

“Mr. Mohr-”

“Just Shadow, please.”

He nodded and continued, “Shadow, why don’t you go wait at the nurse’s station for the rest of your team? You said they were on their way?”

He nodded, but looked to you for confirmation first. You waved him out and he ducked past the curtain. 

“Dex, I’ll level with you here. What you went through yesterday was serious. Would you care to explain where the scratches and blood on your face came from? Because that definitely wasn’t the smoke inhalation.”

“I… had a run-in with one of the tenants we were evacuating.”

“Would that happen to be the young woman we have on a psych hold right now?”

You shrugged. If it was her, that was a good thing. She might get the help she certainly appeared to need. 

“You just went through a trauma, Dex. Not just the smoke inhalation and the broken SCBA, but the attack, of whatever caliber, by a person going through some sort of mental break. At the very least, you shouldn’t be back at work until we know the exact extent of the damage you suffered.”

You didn’t want to hear that kind of news. The job was everything to you. You didn’t want time off, you wanted to get back to the fire station and keep working. You ran your fingers over the ears of the plush in a quick pattern to keep yourself grounded. 

“I understand that.”

“I also want to do a mental health evaluation. We have a social worker here, her name is Kiara. She can sit down with you while you’re here and talk you through what you’re dealing with.”

“Doc, I really don’t think all that is necessary. I work a stressful job, like you do; I’ve learned to cope. I appreciate the effort, really.”

“If you’re sure…”

“I am. I just want to rest a bit, I guess. And is it alright if I get some food?”

“Absolutely. We have some meal services here, or I’m sure your crew are willing to bring you something. They all seem to like you.”

You shrugged. You’d never tried all that hard to develop deep bonds with any of them, but you made sure you were a damn good lieutenant. 

Robby took his leave once Shadow returned with Jazz and Gran. In her typical fashion, Gran had a little tupperware container full of cookies and a throw from her handcrafted collection for you. The trio stuck around for most of the day, even when you suggested they go home. 

“Shadow, I mean it. Get the hell out of here.”

“Dex, I just think-”

“You’re off the clock. You don’t have to think. Go home. Sleep. Shower while you’re at it, you reek of smoke.”

“Pretty sure that’s you, Dex.”

You waved off Jazz’s response. 

“I’m your lieutenant. Take it as an order.”

Shadow let out a shaky sigh and rose to his feet. 

“Alright, I guess I could do with a break. Keep an eye on ‘em, Jazz?”

“You know it.”

You offered a little fist bump, which Shadow met, before he headed out with his bag over one shoulder. Once he was gone, you let out a long, shuddering sigh that sent you into a coughing fit. Gran patted your back softly and readjusted your pillow for you to lean back once you managed to catch your breath. 

“Dex, Shadow didn’t give us all the details. How bad is it?”

You forced a deep breath in through your nose, out through your mouth. Once you were sure you could speak, you let your gaze fall to the sheets. 

“I’ll just need some time. It’s nothing I can’t handle.”

The two women shared a look across the bed. They’d both worked with you long enough to know when you were trying to fool yourself. Shadow didn’t.

Gran kept you entertained for a few hours catching you up on the trash reality television she loved. You couldn’t have cared less, you never had. But it was sort of nice to know she was making an effort to keep you from being alone. 

Once, just after sunset, a doctor stopped in to check on you. He was shorter than the one from that morning, with graying curls and a stern expression. All he said was that he was the night shift attending and would ensure someone was available if you needed anything. You just nodded and thanked him quietly. 

Jazz stuck around until nearly midnight. She pulled out a deck of cards from her bag and played games with you, ran out to grab dinner to share, and gave you the updates she had on the fire and its victims. 

“Jazz, you know you don’t have to stay here all night, right?”

She shrugged and shuffled the cards again. 

“I’m not a child, or a fall risk or something. You’ve been here all day. Just go get some rest. I’m not about to go anywhere.”

She opened her mouth to argue, but you just laid your head back and closed your eyes, breathing deeply with the tube in your nose. You heard her sigh and stand, then shuffle out of the room slowly. Once you were sure you were alone, you allowed yourself to drift off to sleep. 

Your dreams were filled with flames and screaming. The girl from the call was swinging at you with something in her eyes between loathing and terror. You turned and ran, against your own better judgement. You couldn’t face her, couldn’t fall to the hot floor again. When you cleared the doorway, only an endless hall of scorched walls greeted you. The unit doors had disappeared, but you could still hear the screams of your crew as if through the walls themselves. 

Your feet kept moving, your ears straining to hear anything beyond the shrieks of pain. The girl caught up with you, tackling you to the floor and shoving your face into the burning surface. You bucked and fought like a wild animal, but nothing was enough. When you began to turn, barely reaching your back, she lunged at you again, your face erupting in the same pain from the day before. 

Just before she could strike you once more, your eyes shot open and you jolted awake. 

Heavy smoke pushed against the mask that protected your face as the wood beneath the creaked with each step. You had to be careful not to rush, any one of these boards could be loose and the ceiling looked like it was ready to cave. A loud crack sounded from somewhere upstairs, never mind taking it slow. You have to hurry now.

You dashed past the broken elevator just as a board fell from the ceiling. One hand firmly gripped the axe face down and the other grabbed the railing as you made your way up the stairs making sure to check the surroundings every few feet. Each step felt exhausting with the weight of the coat on your body and cautious steps that had to be taken lest you fall into the growing fire in the lobby. The temperature became hotter the higher you went, it was almost unbearable by the time you made it to the 4th floor.

The rest of the team and the captain had yet to make any contact and it was beginning to grate on your nerves. You suspect the reason why, it was the same reason this hotel went up in flames to begin with. Hell, that mob fight was still probably going on despite this spreading fire. Heaving as the oxygen became tighter, you prepared to cut the door down, raising the axe at a good angle before swinging.

Chips of charred wood fell away bit by bit until there was a clear opening to step through. Two figures lay in the room surrounded by burnt belongings and cases of unidentifiable liquids, they must have been doing something shady or possible mob activity. That would explain a few things. You shook your head to clear your already foggy mind. Nothing else mattered right now though, you found the missing persons and now you needed to make sure they made it out okay.

You wished you had backup.

The grey man was easy to pickup but you were beginning to worry about the other unconscious man. Both were larger than you, but you were stronger, you can do this. You tried a second time, then a third time before managing to stand, having both the grey puppet and red-haired puppet over your shoulders. The axe was left behind, there should still be a clean exist through the lobby if you hurried.

The fire had spread far faster then you thought. The path you planned out was now littered with fallen beams and burning chunks of the ceiling.

Seeing no other way around this, you gently placed the two men down as you unlatched a pocket to bring out two trauma blankets, hurriedly wrapping both in the protective fabrics. The last thing you needed was either of their felt skin catching flame.

A quiet wheeze caught your attention.

The grey man appeared to be struggling to breathe, you unlatched your own mask to put it over them, keeping it close enough so the tank's hose wouldn't snap away. It was going to be okay, the exist wasn't too far.

You carried the two once more, this time with more difficulty, your steps became uneven and your breath was ragged, no longer having the mask to filter out the smoke.

It's okay you told yourself, you are so so close. You never noticed the red eyes that followed you.

Pushing through the burning and itchiness in your chest, you made it to the front of the building before stumbling out and falling to one knee, not wanting to hurt the victims still on your shoulders. Everything felt so heavy. It was so hot.

You flew into a coughing fit after placing the two men on the sidewalk and looked around. Your team nor your captain were anywhere in sight. They should have been here by now. Where was the truck? Where were the ambulance? You tried to stand but failed.

Another cough escaped and you fell to the sidewalk, clawing at your coat to get it off. Your head was hurting and you felt sick. It was too hot.

Your eyelids fluttered before everything faded to black.

______________________________________________________

One knee bounced over the other as the music playing in the background went on. The brightly lit 'Closed' sign in the front flickered.

"Sally, do you understand what exactly it is you did tonight?" The voice was monotone with an edge to it.

The yellow puppet made a nervous laugh, shrugging their shoulders. "I got the target and Frank n' Eddie managed to save the evidence?"

Wally clicked his tongue in annoyance. "You made quite the mess for what was supposed to be a clean job. Two buildings burned down and a firetruck blown to bits." His foot tapped impatiently. "And now the police have gotten themselves involved if only to appease the public." Glasses clinked behind the counter as the bartender cleaned quietly. Wally continued.

"You're lucky at least one firefighter made it into the hotel before it collapsed. Frank and Eddie wouldn't be here otherwise." His voice was dripping with venom, but he made no move to do anything.

Wally rested one hand over the other as he stared at Sally. "Now, I want you to make me a promise Sally. Do not ever use those damn explosives again unless it's already been discussed beforehand. Do I make myself clear?"

"Y-yes boss!"

"Good."

He peered over the counter, taking a sip from the beverage in hand, swishing it around a bit. "Barnaby, did Frank get the identity of the firefighter?"

"Yeah, he said somethin' about a mask or whateveh. But he got the face and name after a bit of diggin'," Barnaby stared off to the side as he inhaled another breath from the cigar. "Should be easy to tie up loose ends this time around, as far as I know that firefighter was the only one who saw the cases in that room."

A grin grew on the boss's face. "Well then. As soon as Eddie and Julie are ready, he'll be the one to pick up the special package."

Sally may or may not have used an explosive during a deal at a hotel that caused a giant hole in the side of the building and started a massive fire...and she may or may not have accidentally blown up a firetruck and caused a roadblock.

_______________

You never thought being up in the fire tower was lonely. It gave you a sense of serenity, for some odd reason. It calmed you, even now during the end of the fucking world.

They say, ‘if you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life’. In some cases, you felt that statement were true. Of course, you had the bad days, like if there was a missing persons’ case that had led authorities to your district or a blaze had begun to cause destruction to the forestry, but they were rare.

Now, all you had to focus on, was surviving.

Who in the hell would have thought that dead people would come back swinging? Eating people, like those crazy cannibalistic stories you read about when a guy does bath salts and snack on his girls face or those isolated tribes who eat those who wander into their area.

The thought crosses your mind each day, inventing a new scenario each time as to why this whole shit show started. A weaponised virus? A genetically mutated version of the flu? Hell, even a bad batch of bath salts? Who knew?

Maybe it’s the wrath of God, their way of telling us we messed up as a species.

Each thought, each imagination, each theory, every story, or idea that could even be deemed plausible made your head shake with a chuckle, a bitter chuckle at that.

“You know the one thing I miss?” You speak aloud to yourself, sat there at your desk on your old spiny chair, feet propped up atop the wooden surface, half empty bottle of vodka to the right side of your feet. “I damn miss sex.”

You nodded as if agreeing with yourself before leaning forward, snatching the clear bottle up lazily and bringing it towards your lips as you lean back against the backrest of the chair. “God, I need to get some fucking action,” you muttered quietly as you tip the bottle upwards and the alcohol enters your mouth through parted lips and slides down your throat smoothly, the burning sensation no longer felt.

Back when the dead stayed dead, your job offered little interaction, which you honestly couldn’t hate, to a certain degree. After months and months spent within the mountains, living within the tower, and watching over nature and the tourists that come through, a different lookout would take over your duties, maybe for only a month at least, sometimes so much as 6 times that period of time.

You, you were usually there for 3 months minimum. The longest, a whole year. But when the time came that someone would relieve you of your duties, you’d pack up your more personal belongings and trek through the mountains and forests for a whole two days until you reached your rusted, beat down red truck.

From there, you’d drive miles back towards civilisation and hunker down until the other lookout was ready to be relieved and you’d go back to your perfect solitude. Your first stop, even before heading to the small one storey house in the outskirts of the small town in Georgia, was always the bar.

One, two, three, four, five drinks and you gladly took a stranger home. The bar visits were many during those periods where you were away from home, your real home, and many strangers were met, too.

Yes, sex was definitely a thing you missed. If not for the pleasure, then for the human interaction and possible intimacy.

Looking out through the large glass window, you sigh as you observe the beautiful orange and purple hues in the sky as the sun is close to setting behind tall trees. You took one final sip of the clear liquid before swinging your feet off of the desk and carelessly placing the bottle back with a soft thud.

You stood, stretching your arms above your head and bent your back slightly until a satisfying pop of your spine was felt. You exhaled as you looked towards the door, scanning over it to ensure it was locked before stalking towards your bed, flopping down on the comfortable mattress, kicking your boots off as your legs continued to dangle over the edge.

Releasing a yawn, you thought over your plan for the next few days as you head towards a nearby town to stock up on essentials. God can only hope that you’re still alive and your tower is still standing.

You drift off into a dreamless slumber, resting before you begin your inevitably difficult task.

_______________

Three days in town, three God damn days in that shell of humanity.

Shit was running low there. It had to at least been 5, maybe 6 years since this shit started. It lasted you for a damn while, but you knew you’d soon have to start venturing further to more distant towns, leaving the tower unattended for longer periods of times.

Jesus, did you miss food shopping online.

Even out in the middle in of a sea of forestry and up mountains had food and other supplies been delivered to you.

You were nearing your 2-day hike through the trees, up steep inclines, and gorge walking through shin-high waters, closing in on the tower you’ve called home the moment you switched careers to become a fire lookout.

Spotting the tower through a small thicket of trees and shrubbery, your body slightly sagged in relief, happy to be home once more. But movement in one of the windows caused you to freeze. You back up a little ways and crouch behind the large base of a tree trunk, gently pulling your binoculars from a side pocket on your rucksack and bringing them towards your face.

Peering through the binoculars up towards the tower, your eyebrows furrow as you spot the tuft of brown hair and hat. You mulled over your options before finally deciding that maybe making contact is the best way forward within this situation. You were pissed, you hadn’t seen a single soul for at least 3 and a half years and now some fucker was stealing from you? You hoped to God that wasn’t the case.

You didn’t want to start killing people now after so long, especially the first person you’ve seen in years.

Pulling the standardised fire service walkie from your belt, you bring it towards you. Taking a deep breath, you held down the PTT and began to speak, your radio connected to the larger setup within the tower.

“I see you’ve made yourself comfortable up in my tower,” you release the PPT as you continue to spectate the stranger, seeing them jump from the sudden voice and look around in a panic. “Hey man, you need to calm yourself and get over to that radio on the desk over there. The least you could do is have a friendly chat with me since it appears you’re robbing my shit.”

You see the stranger hesitate before looking towards where you knew the desk was place and strain his eyes to spot you as he picks up the second radio. You hear the slight crackle, signifying he’s pressed the PTT before his voice comes through clear.

“I’m not stealing from you. I got separated from my group and thought I could hold up here for a few days.” He sounded young, sounding like he had barely dealt with dan puberty.

“How’d you get here? Long ass walk, boy,” you questioned.

“We were nearby when we got attacked. Wasn’t that hard to get here, really.”

You push down on the PTT and sigh heavily. “Listen, kid, I don’t want to hurt you and I gotta feeling you don’t wanna hurt me. Correct?”

There was a slight pause before his response. “Correct. That doesn’t mean I won’t if I have to.”

“Smart kid,” you compliment before continuing. “I’m gonna come back up to my tower and we’re gonna be alright, yeah? We ain’t gonna try some crazy shit and one of us ends up getting hurt. I’ll share my supplies with you for a few days then I’m assuming you’re gonna split to find your group. Correct again?”

There was little hesitation this time round and with a simple “Correct” back, you nodded, although he couldn’t see. You slowly emerge from behind the tree, standing fully once more, now revealing yourself to the kid.

He’s quick to spot you and from where you stand, you see him give a curt nod. With that, you take that as your que to close in on the tower and climb the steps. You slowly ascend, mulling over whether or not you should take hold of your rifle or leave it shouldered. Deciding on the former, you keep the same pace before soon, your head is just visible to the balcony surrounding the inside of the tower.

You and the unknown kid look eyes, observing each other, as you continue your way up and eventually, both of your whole forms are revealed to one another. You step towards the door and slowly open it, it creaking and groaning slightly on its hinges.

Theres a small distance between you and the kid as you stand opposite ends of the towers’ cabin. A pregnant silence falls between you as you scope each other out, both wary of what the others’ next move is.

You slowly show your hands are empty as you begin to slide the rifle from off of your shoulder and placing it atop one of the three desks within the small enclosure. Once your rifle is settled, you place the large, stuffed duffle back down beside the door, your rucksack following shortly after.

A few more moments of silence follow before you ultimately decide to break it. “What’s your name, kid?”

“Carl.” You notice his long brown hair and the bandage covering his right eye, his face covered in a thin layer of dirt and some other much you can’t exactly place.

“You got a last name, Carl?” You can tell he’s doing the same as you, observing you, taking in your appearance.

“Just Carl, for now.” You silently praise the kid for his thinking, clearly knowing that not every living person can be trusted.

“Well, just Carl, I’m Y/N.” He nods in acknowledgement and the thick tension that had settled in the air between you slightly dissipates. “You hungry?”

_______________

You and Carl had eaten in silence, still keeping some distance between you, and glancing at each other on occasion. From the looks of it, you felt he was a good kid, but looks can be deceiving. You had learnt that from the old world.

Once you had settled your stomachs and felt your hunger diminish, the silence between you has surprisingly been a comfortable one. The two of you seemed to understand once another and that you’ve both clocked on to how neither of you would be trying to harm the other any time soon.

Your gaze roamed over to him and settled on to his covered eye once more, curiosity piquing your interest. “Hey kid, what happened to your eye?”

He looked towards you and after a moment of internal debate, he reluctantly began to share. “Some asshole shot me.”

“Shit kid. Does it hurt?” You made a vague gesture towards your own eye as you cringe slightly.

Carl shrugs before looking down towards his boots. “Not really. Not anymore, at least.”

You nod in understanding before continuing. “Did you know the fucker who shot you?” you asked, receiving a nod in response. “What’s his name?”

“Ron.” He spat the name out with such venom and hate in his tone, and understandably so.

“Wow, Ron. Even sounds like an asshole.” You smirk slightly as you see Carl smile himself, clearly his spirits being uplifted by the light joke.

His eyes wandered down to your hands that were clasped in front of you, arms rested atop your knees as you bent forwards slightly. He paused before asking his own set of questions. “What happened to your finger?”

Looking down towards your hand, you chuckle, shaking your head, remembering the time you had lost 2 thirds of your left ring finger during your years of active work in firefighting. “Accident at work many, many years ago, kid. No assholes called Ron involved in this shit.” You raised your hand and wiggled your fingers, chuckling once more.

He sent you a smile, glad he hadn’t upset you with asking. “What did you do? Before all this, I mean.”

You smiled too. You missed talking about your work, about all the positions you took up that you loved doing. “Well, before this shit storm kid, I was a fire lookout in this very tower. Before that, was a firefighter. A good one too, I like to believe.”

“My dad was an officer. Sheriffs’ deputy. Best one, too.” He happily recounted the days before the apocalypse. “Him and his best friend were partners.” His smile turned slightly bitter, and you couldn’t help but be curious, although decided against prying.

“Where’d ya live before all this?” you asked. This was the most conversation you’ve had within over half a decade, you began to get carried away. You enjoyed reminiscing and you enjoyed the fact you weren’t talking to yourself like someone who belonged in a looney bin.

“King County.”

“Well shit, kid. I used to live there.” You chuckled at the coincidence.

“Really?” Carl asked, slight shock underlining his tone, also surprised by the ridiculous coincidence.

“Yeah, kid. Lived in a nice old suburban house with my dads’ folks. Moved not too long after graduation to the other side of Georgia to begin my training as a firefighter. Moved closer back to K.C. about 6 years before all this went down.”

The two of you fell into smooth conversation about what you had loved about the town and what you did while you both lived there. You learnt he was in 5th grade when the world turned to shit, and he learnt that your favourite place to be was behind the small convenient store.

The comfortable silence overtook once more as your reminiscing died down; both faces still adorning smiles. You turned to look out the window and took note of the stars that littered the sky, well past midnight by now. You only seemed to snap out of your thoughts when Carl spoke.

“Grimes.”

“What?” Your attention snaping back over towards the teenager, not hearing what he’d first said.

“Grimes. My name’s Carl Grimes.”

Recognition flooded your mind and a million images of the boy you once grew up with flashed in your head. You bit down on your tongue to keep from saying anything for the time being. You couldn’t speak about him, not right now.

Instead, you covered up with a smile, this one slightly more strained than the others before pipping up. “Well Mr Grimes, I think you should get some shut eye. It’s pretty late. I’ll keep watch, yeah?”

He nodded before standing up and going to lower himself to the floor before you stopped him. “Hey kid, take the bed. It ain’t much but it sure as shit is comfy.” He chuckled before redirecting himself towards the mattress atop the wooden frame, kicking his boots off before laying on his side, his back faced towards you.

“Night Y/N,” he called out over his shoulder before settling his head down atop the pillow, hair now flattening against the object of comfort.

“Night kid.”

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I feel like this is actually a good story idea yet suck at putting it into an actual story

I’ve always like the idea of fire lookouts and fire towers within the mountains, probably more so since we don’t have them in Britain

Which also means I have no clue about any of the layout in America so just pretend the geography I’ve put in this actually works, please lmao

If you would like to be added to a taglist, just lemme know

Anywho, i hope you enjoy

As always, constructive criticism and requests are welcomed and greatly appreciated :D

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Taglist:

The call came at 3 am, the alarm buzzing through the firehouse, startling you awake. You and the boys had spent all evening playing card games over homemade lasagna and milkshakes. Grunts and groans echoed through the bunks as your coworkers awoke from their slumber. Within moments you were all wide awake and rushing to put on your gear and get down to the rig. Captain Bishop was ringing out orders through the garage, you and your partner hopping into the medic truck and chasing the others down the streets of DC.

The fire was in an old infirmary building that had been converted to a child center in a working-class neighborhood. Smoke was billowing out of three back windows and your partner was quickly setting up a triage center.

“Y/N, I’m sending in two ahead of you to start fire control but I want you to go in and look for civilians. The owner of the center called and said that sometimes the kids from the neighborhood will sneak in after dark and stay the night. It’s a rough neighborhood—”

Your captain’s words were cut off by the sound of screaming coming from the building. With a nod from your Captain, you rushed in. As you got closer to the back of the center, the screaming grew louder, cries of help ringing over and over again.

“I’m coming for you, just hang on!” you shouted into the air. Your skin was really beginning to feel the sting of the blaze around you, ashes collecting on your mask that you had to intermittently wipe away. Once you got close to sound of the children, you opened the door and ran towards the back of the room. Unbeknownst to you, the door behind you was slammed shut, locking you into the room. Near your head, a gas main turned on and licks of flame shot towards your body, you frantically jumping out of the way. Unfortunately, as you jumped just a step to the left, you tripped a trigger and a giant wooden plank came crashing down onto your chest, trapping you against the floor as the fire grew on all sides of you.

Outside the center, three federal-issued SUVs came screeching to a stop, Tara and Emily the first to jump into action, both running towards your captain. With frantic eyes, Tara immediately began barking questions at your team.

“Have you sent anyone in yet?” Emily’s calm voice was a stark contrast to Tara’s frantic energy. She knew that this was your team and that you were on call tonight. She had spent the whole ride from the BAU to the scene texting and calling you, trying to warn you not to go inside.

“Yes, I have sent in two control and one retrieval so far.”

“Pull them, now. Get them out.” Emily commanded the captain of your squad.

With a squint of her eyes and a shake of her head, your captain pushed back. “I can’t pull them, there is a fire and children inside in danger. We need to put the fire out.”

Tara immediately stepped forward, towering over your captain. “No, Bishop. There is an unsub in the greater-DC area targeting fire departments and trapping the fighters inside, burning them alive. We have reason to believe this is a trap for your team and you need to get Y/N out now!”

Captain Bishop spoke quickly into her radio, commanding that all personnel retreat from the scene until further notice. When only two people came rushing back out, Tara’s heart sank.

“Cap, we can’t find Y/N. They’re not responding to our radio calls.”

Luke and Matt came up to your squad and started asking questions, trying to decipher whether or not you had been lured by the unsub’s trap. Unprepared for the feds to show up, the unsub was quickly trying to escape out the back of the building when JJ caught sight of him. With a dead sprint, JJ tackled the unsub, fighting him to the ground as an explosion went off behind everyone.

“Listen, Agent Prentiss, that was an explosion and one of mine is in there. We need to get them out, NOW.”

You heard the explosion from the room next to you as you tried to take slow, deep breaths from your oxygen tank. Another plank fell from the ceiling, knocking you unconscious as the smoke and fire slowly crept to your body.

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When you awoke, you heard the slow, steady beeping of a heart monitor and a gentle, rhythmic whoosh of an oxygen machine pumping. Your eyes stung as you opened them but the cool air pumping through your nasal cannula soothed your raw throat. Something warm was gripping your hand tightly and you turned your head to look at what it was.

“Y/N! Oh my god, you’re awake.”

The sound of your girlfriend Tara’s voice was like music to your ears and you smiled when you felt her press a kiss to your forehead.

“You can’t scare my like that ever again! I was so worried.”

With a chuckle, you gripped her hand a little harder. “I’m sorry, sunshine, but I can’t promise that. You know the job.”

She sighed and laid her head on your shoulder, leaning uncomfortably from her perch in the bedside chair. You turned to place a kiss on her head and sat in silence for a while, giving and taking comfort from each other after your scare.

After a few hours, your friends from the BAU all filtered in, leaving flowers and cards on all of the empty surfaces in your room. Luke brought a deck of uno cards and said that now would be as good of a time as ever to reclaim his title as King of the Card now that Spencer was on sabbatical and you were still looped up on painkillers for your broken ribs and burnt legs. You laughed and played with the entire team, holding Tara to your side without reprieve. When everyone filed out for the evening, you were still reigning champ of uno and Emily made you promise to come over and watch baseball with her wife as soon as you felt better so that she wouldn’t have to pretend to understand sports anymore.

“I love you so much, Y/N.” Tara’s voice was uncharacteristically serious, and you reached out to grab her hand.