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Joe Cruz had a hilarious idea.
It would be hilarious for him and his friends but not so much for the victim. The said victim being their new candidate, Blake Gallo. After taking a sip from his beer, he proposed the idea.
"Hey, Gallo. You see that lady over there?"
Gallo turned around and zeroed in on the woman who was currently conversing with their paramedic-in-charge by the bar. She was petite with dark hair and a smile that was infectious. He felt his cheeks heat up at the sound of her laughter. "Y ─ yeah. Why?"
"I heard she likes men who run into burning buildings."
This sparked an interest in Gallo, straightening his posture. "Oh?"
Cruz smirked. "Definitely. You should give it a shot. I mean, you are a firefighter now."
The snickers of Kidd and Capp fell on deaf ears as Gallo chugged down his beer. He needed a lot of liquid courage. He marched towards the bar, feeling the room get all dizzy.
Both women stopped mid-conversation with Brett's brows furrowing in confusion at the sight of their candidate. "Gallo, what are ─ "
"I'm firefighter candidate Blake Gallo."
The woman's eyes lit up. "Oh! You're the new guy. Brett was just telling me all about you. I'm Maddie."
In all his drunken glory, Gallo took Maddie's outstretched hand and placed a quick kiss on it. He took longer than usual to let go of her hand. "Well, Maddie, it's a good thing I know CPR. Because you're taking my breath away."
Maddie threw her head back laughing as Sylvie choked on her drink. She quickly pulled her hand away to pass her friend some napkins. "That's very nice of you, Blake Gallo, but I don't think my husband would appreciate you giving me mouth-to-mouth. Cute pick-up line though."
"Husband?" Gallo scoffed and shrugged. "I don't see him anywhere around here ─ "
"Turn around." A deep voice huffed, "Now you see him."
Gallo swore he could take a piss at the moment as he stared up at lieutenant Kelly Severide's figure ─ arms crossed and eyes blazing with fury.
He quickly sobered up, straightening his posture. "Lieutenant ─ I ─ I didn't know that ─ " Severide raised his eyebrows. "Cruz told me ─ he said ─ "
From behind, Maddie uttered softly. "Knock it off, Kelly. The kid's going to shit his pants."
Severide's lips curled up into a wide grin. He uncrossed his arms and chuckled. In one quick step, he was by Maddie's side, curling his arm around her waist and pressing a soft kiss on the top of her head. "It was fun to see you squirm, Gallo, but I gotta listen to the boss."
"Looks like Cruz decided to initiate your rite of passage, huh?" Brett added, a small smile on her lips.
Gallo blinked. "Y ─ yeah." He cleared his throat. "Excuse me."
Gallo stalked back to the table with his eyes still blinking at what had just happened. Meanwhile, the gang was snickering and they hadn't made an effort to hide it.
Kidd raised her bottle. "Welcome to Firehouse 51, Gallo."
"That was your rite of passage?" Gallo groaned, running a hand through his hair. "Making me flirt with Lieutenant Severide's wife? That was horrifying."
"It wouldn't be the first time our candidate tried to flirt with Severide's wife." Cruz managed to say between the laughter. He remembered a Borelli making a move on Maddie. It seemed like a lifetime ago.
"This is horrible rite of passage." Gallo told them.
Capp shrugged. "We know but it's entertaining to see men squirm."
"Yeah. Just don't lay a hand on Maddie." Mouch sternly said. "Or you're dead-meat to Severide."
Gallo nodded his rapidly. "Noted."
author's note: had this saved in my drafts for a while now. happy 2023 everyone!!
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