Inferno | ✎

04

GABRIEL DIDN'T SLEEP WELL that night. Isabel told him to sleep on the couch as punishment, and being so stiff and tired, he didn't protest. He needed a bed, and he didn't want to make anything worse. So, he woke up the next day with a kink in his back and more exhaustion than he went to bed with.

He got ready and went to work. Isabel didn't come out of the room and disturb him; one of the perks of being a housewife meant that she could do what she wanted, whenever she wanted. Gabriel resented her for that. The sun was already out, Autumn making the days shorter but more of a bore. He drove to work, got dressed in his uniform, leaving his wedding ring and other belongings in his locker, and met up with the captain for his morning drills with the rest of the crew. Nathaniel waved him an excited greeting as he made eye contact with Gabriel. He reciprocated and got stuck into the drill with the rest of the firefighters.

Thank God it was a mental stimulation drill. Gabriel didn't think he would have made it through a full physical drill; his back was aching. He was made to screw a bag of nuts onto bolts and told to arrange the bolts in size order. It took a little while, but by the first dozen he was nimble, and completed the task well before the others. The captain admired that about Gabriel. He was a gifted person that made his job of being a firefighter so much easier.

Once the drills were done with, an incident happened. The sirens rang, and the crew went to the scene in the firetruck. There was an accident; a T-bone collision at a nearby intersection. The roads needed to be closed and the two cars needed to be secured and checked for fuel leakage. One of the drivers was trapped.

They arrived on the scene. The captain instructed Gabriel to check the cars for hazards and to make sure they wouldn't move, while the others secured the area and redirected traffic. Police soon arrived on the scene, as well as paramedics.

He checked under the cars for leakage; none. He secured the cars. The captain instructed Gabriel to move the other passengers to a safe zone; Nathaniel was instructed with assessing the trapped passenger.

His leg was crushed. It was a miracle he didn't die.

The Captain took control of the roads, redirecting traffic with the aid of another firefighter. Nathaniel, with the help of machinery from the fire engine, cut the car door off and helped the EMT's stabilise the survivor. There was so much blood and flesh; Gabriel could see anxiety paint Nathaniel's face from the safe zone.

Once stabilised, the EMT's loaded the survivor onto the ambulance. The other driver was told that they may have a concussion from the airbag and was also taken in the ambulance. Both drivers incapacitated, the police called in tow trucks to remove the vehicles.

Once the cars were taken and the people were driven to a hospital, there wasn't much left to do for the fire-fighters. The crew went back to the station.

#

"Christ, how did you have time to get fast food?" Gabriel asked Nathaniel, who pulled a paper bag out of the fridge. "Wouldn't it be all gross and greasy now that it's cold?"

"I bought it before I got here this morning, and yes, the microwave will make it taste good. After what just happened, a burger sounds bloody good."

"The fire station has a psychologist if you need it. Don't forget that."

Nathaniel nodded, waving a dismissing hand. "I'll be right for now. Might go after work. All I wanna do is eat right now."

He heated his food up and sat next to Gabriel, digging straight into his KFC Zinger Burger. Gabriel, fork in hand, stabbed at his Caesar salad, watching in disgust.