There has been rumours about a new firefighter/paramedic joining the squad permanently, which makes most of them feel very worried about the new dynamic the squad of 118 is going to have, especially to Buck. But what if she was exactly what the 118...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Chapter one Breath, Don't Panic
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
The 118 crew were worried. Not just worried, petrified! Bobby announced a couple days ago that they are receiving a new crew-member. It wouldn’t have been worrisome if she was just a regular first responder, no, she was going to work with Hen and Chimney as a paramedic. Bobby didn’t give them any more information, mostly because he didn’t imagine that this news would throw the whole team into a spiral. Or maybe he did. Nonetheless he didn’t give anything away besides that it‘s a female, so rumours wouldn’t stir up the pot.
Which had the opposite effect, obviously. The second Bobby turned his back to them and couldn’t hear them anymore, the whispering started.
„I heard that she transferred because she lost her temper at her old firehouse“, Chim spoke in a hush tone as the others made a small circle so they were the only ones that could hear the conversation.
„And where did you hear that again, Chim?“, Eddie chuckled, he couldn’t believe everyone was still doing this kind of game.
He knew everyone was worried about the transfer, secretly he was too, but he wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt since he was once the new guy too. Who knows, maybe she‘ll be a perfect fit for this chaotic group of people.
„an old colleague of mine, he knows someone… you know how it is“, Chim slowly realised what he just said and avoided eye contact.
A chuckle left Eddie‘s mouth again, glancing up again from the flyer he was reading.
„Maybe we should listen to Bobby and wait till she arrives“, Hen gave them her final thought as she prepared herself to leave the tea party that the guys started to operate multiple times a shift.
„Hen‘s right, we‘ve got work to do plus she might be the perfect addition to our team“, Eddie agreed and went ahead to help Hen with the inventory.
„we‘re already a perfect team…“, Buck voiced his opinion but kept it on a down low, defeated he stood up from where he sat and made himself useful by helping Ravi, one of the newest addition that the crew got fond of very quickly.
Over the course of the weeks since the announcement the rumours got bigger and weirder until they turned into opinions, while they still haven’t even met their new colleague, not to mention even knew her name or age.
Until the day arrived unknowingly, the 118‘s fire truck was on its way back from an emergency, where all six of them sat closely to each other. After going through all the topics they could, they once again circled back to her.
„shouldn’t she be here by now? I mean you’ve announced her transfer to us like what? Three, four weeks ago? Maybe even longer!“, Buck asked Bobby through the intercom, finding this topic more irritating than curious.
The longer it took her to arrive, the more he didn’t like her. Not to mention he has never met or talked to her.
It just wasn’t his kind of cup of tea of being left out and he has been left out of a lot of secrets in his life.
Bobby chuckled once again in the front, „she‘ll be there when she‘ll be there, Buck“
Chim and Buck groaned while the others started laughing once more.
„why is it so important to you to meet her already?“, Ravi asked the two impatient firefighter curiously.
Ravi has gotten used to the 118 group faster than he imagined, so he knew how impatient and what kind of overthinkers some of them could be, especially Buck. But this behaviour that these two were showing right now topped all of the other times.
„what if she doesn’t fit in? I mean we‘re already working perfectly together, what if she is going to fuck up our dynamic so bad, that we all build over the years together, that we‘re not going to work it up together again?“, Buck started to vent to his self-made family.
There it was, the fear of losing what he was looking for throughout his life and finally found, only for it to be snatched away right from his hand.
Bobby sighed, he knew it would come to this, after all it wouldn’t be Buck if there wasn’t a small chance of losing something what he finally wanted in life; a place of belonging somewhere.
„Buck, what do you think she is feeling right now? She‘s joining a workplace that already established a bond together with the fear of not fitting in, maybe so far she made some bad experience with some fire stations in her life“, Bobby joined in on the discussion in the end.
„finally, we should just wait up and welcome her with open arms, " Eddie gave Buck an encouraging smile. Buck gave in, he really needed that from the both of them. They’re right, he should just wait it out, maybe it’ll take a couple more weeks until she'll arrive and he would have long forgotten his fear.
———————————
Alright, he was wrong. More than wrong.
Because a couple hours after his shift started and the conversation from after the first emergency happened, there she was. A little disoriented and anxious, but here. She was nothing than what Buck imagined her to be. Honestly, he wasn’t the only one thinking that.
„Hey, are you looking for someone?“, Hen approached her cautiously first, Buck, Ravi and Chim right behind Hen, still unsure what an unknown woman would do in a fire station.
„I… was looking for someone“, her soft voice barely hearable through the loud fire tracks being parked in again after another emergency.
The four firefighters were still unsure of her arrival, which caused her to slowly get back into panic mode.
„isn’t this the 118? Sorry I'm not very familiar with the fire stations in Los Angeles!“.
„No, No, you’re right. This is the 118“, Hen calmed her down, while Buck‘s wheels inside of his brain started to turn.
„you’re the transfer!“, Buck triumphantly said.
Before she could answer, she heard Bobby behind her.
„I should go, I‘ll see you around I guess“, still unsure with the firefighters that approached her, she walked up the stairs where Bobby called out for her.
„I hope we haven’t kept you waiting for too long, an emergency downtown kept us busy“, Bobby apologised to her as they walked into his office to discuss the foreseeable future at the station together.
Everything discussed and finalised, the only thing left was the introduction to the team.
„Last thing, before we go out there“, Bobby felt like encouragement could be needed after he heard from her what happened in the last place she worked at and he knew his team, they could be… overwhelming at first as he saw from upstairs. The new recruitment waited for the captain to continue. She had been worried at first, but seeing her new captain was more… supportive and humane, some hope is sparking inside of her.
„some of them can come up too strong at first and they have been waiting for your arrival for so long, so you’re not the only one who’s nervous“, Bobby gave her his famous encouraging smile as he nodded. „Just give them a chance or two, they’ll come around.“
