Things had worked out for the best. Michael had married Megan, but he had
quickly divorced her. Ryan had gotten back with Ken, but had broken that
off. They were still in love with each other, but had once again pushed it
under the rug.
She hadn't forgotten the day he had broken her heart, but neither of them
mentioned it. They had just seemed to pick up their friendship again.......
Exhaling loudly, Wick plopped down on his bed exhausted. The soft cotton
brushing his cheeks, he stared up at the ceiling and blocked out the sounds
of Michael's furious scribbling in his family notebook, and Ryan brushing
and re-brushing out her hair. It had been awhile since his partners had
gotten on his nerves that badly.
He glanced over at Ryan, still trying to decide if she was really okay. The
good news was that she hadn't picked up a bottle despite all the hell
Michael had put her through. But the bad news was the fact that she was
totally closed up. She didn't talk much, and he knew for a fact that she was
seriously considering leaving the station.
She met his glance, and offered a tiny smile. Truth was, she really was
considering leaving the station......transferring out. It would ease a lot
of her stress...
Sighing and setting down the brush she stood up. Bell set his pen down and
Wick pulled himself into a sitting position.
"I'm just gonna go grab a soda. Anybody want anything?"
When no one responded, she shrugged and left the room. Wick stood and sat
on Bell's bed, looking him deep in the eyes. "Man, I think we need to talk,"
he said. Closing the folder, Bell ran his hand through his hair and
shrugged. "Look, man. Ryan never gave me the full details of your breakup,
and I didn't ask. But what I DO know, is that we have gotta do something to
keep her here. We can not let her transfer out."
Bell nodded, fully understanding. The same concerns had been floating
through his mind just seconds before. He knew he had hurt her...and he also
knew that if she left, he'd be lost. They had been partners for over four
years now, and he had grown accustomed to seeing her on a regular basis.
"I know, Wick. But...how can we convince her to stay?" Bell asked, wringing
his hands until they were white.
"I...I haven't figured that out yet. But.....wait! I know!"
§*§*§*§
Ryan awoke and stretched lazily. Shooting a look over at the empty beds of
her partners, she shrugged and pulled herself out of bed. Yawning and
stretching her hands over her head, she pulled down the blinds at the
windows. Too bright. Lately she had become like a vampire. She loathed the
sunlight.
She changed into her jumper and went downstairs. Wick, Bell, Durfee, and
the rest of the fire station were gathered in a huddle. "What's going on?"
she asked. they all snapped up guiltily and backed slowly away from the
circle. She put her hands on her hips and shot each one a questioning look.
But everyone was avoiding eye contact...
"Shouldn't you guys already be gone?" Durfee asked with a raised eyebrow.
The firemen nodded, smiled slyly and left, hauling their bags up over their
shoulders. She headed into the kitchen and started clearing the dishes. Bell
and Wick came in smiling. Picking up a sticky glass, she hurriedly dumped it
in the sink and wiped her hands. She could hold guts in her hands and she
could handle blood, but don't even give her dirty dishes.
"What are you guys up to?" she asked. it was an innocent enough question,
but they squirmed and averted their eyes. She laughed and continued piling
the dishes in the sink.
Shift change came quickly and they raced to the room to change. Wick nodded
at Bell, and he casually approached Ryan. "What do ya say to coming over to
my place for lunch?" he asked properly, giving her a small bow. Chuckling
and slugging him lightly on the arm she replied, "sure."
He bowed again. "Very good, madam."
"And what time should I be there, kind sir?" she said in a British accent.
Their mutual flirtation had returned and Wick shook his head. ‘Leave it to
them' he thought.
"Noon?"
"I shall count the minutes," she laughed. Leaning in, she plunked a kiss on
his nose. "I miss doing that," she grinned. He playfully wiped the kiss off
and, as usual, she sucker punched him lightly. They walked out the station
door together and he watched as she climbed in her jeep. They each pulled
out and went their respective ways.
§*§*§*§
Ryan stood in front of her open closet door, pondering what to wear. They
hadn't said how she should dress...
"Ambiguous, as always," she grumbled to herself. She reached into her bag
to grab her deodorant, and a paper fell out. Bending over, she picked it up,
smoothing the edges. It was the form for transfer. All filled out....
Sighing and running her hands through her hair, she placed the paper down
on the night stand. She couldn't deal with this right now. She finally
grabbed a pair of pale yellow jeans and a navy blue tank top that showed off
her tanned stomach. It wasn't really like her to wear such revealing
clothes, but she just felt the urge to this time.
She glanced at her alarm clock. 12:19. Oh well. She'd be fashionably late.
Brushing out her hair, she grabbed her car keys and headed out the door. The
sudden temperature change was shocking. She could already feel sweat beads
forming on her upper lip. She climbed in the jeep and turned on the air
conditioner. Flipping on the radio, she tapped her fingers on the steering
wheel. The traffic was light and she reached Bell's place quickly, and was
surprised to find several cars parked out front.
Timidly, she knocked on the door. Getting no answer, she let herself in.
The front room was empty, but she could smell barbeque. Walking out to the
patio, she saw almost the entire station out there, drinking sodas and
talking. She poked her head out the sliding glass door and offered a timid
"hello."
Everyone popped their heads up and greeted her. Wick slid over and handed
her a soda. "Ryan! Welcome to the ‘77 party!" he laughed. "Bridges! Crank it
up!" the music on the speakers got even louder and everyone broke out
dancing. Ryan joined in, swaying her hips seductively and making rounds
through each of the firemen. It felt so great. The beat of the music, the
attention she was getting, just...letting loose and doing something totally
un-Ryan-like.
The song ended and a slow one came on. She spun around and threw her arms
around the first man she could reach. It was Bell. She wrapped her arms
around his neck and closed the space between them.
Bell was freaking. Here he was, in Ryan's arms, and he couldn't move...or
breathe.... He finally wrapped his arms around her waist and stared at her
face. Her crystal blue eyes stared back at him, not backing off. Their eyes
held contact all throughout the song.
It ended and they reluctantly broke apart. She laughed nervously and headed
over to where Bridges was manning the grill.
§*§*§*§
The party had lingered on until about 5:00pm. Ryan, Wick and Bell were
collapsed on lawn chairs. Ryan surveyed the mess and buried her face in her
hands. "I'm too pooped to clean. I'm going to use the restroom. I'll be back
to help," they gave little grunts, but made no move to stand. She
disappeared into the house and Wick and Bell let out relieved smiles.
"Come on. Let's clean up," Wick said recalcitrantly. Bell grumbled but
stood. They had a HUGE mess to work on....
§*§*§*§
Ryan stood in her bedroom and stared into the mirror. Her lipstick was
smeared, and her hair was a total mess. She grinned happily as Michael slid
up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Slow...." he said.
"Let's keep it slow..."
She nodded and kissed his hand. He kissed her goodbye and gave her one last
smile before heading out the door. She caught something out of the corner of
her eye. She turned her head slightly to see the transfer form. Picking it
gingerly up, she crumpled it into a ball and tossed it in the trash. With
her relationship with Michael finally picking up again, and Wick being there
for her still, she knew whatever problems she was having, they could only be
worked out with help from her partners... She'd tell them tomorrow.
They were stuck with her.
THE END
