Little Fires(Evan Buckley)

The New Guy

Respond to a call about a guy blowing himself up. It's not as nasty as it sounds.

"So Silver Star huh?" "Yeah." Eddie answers. "You save a platoon or something?" Chime pries more. "No no nothing like that. Uh just a convoy." I look at Buck and he's glowering. I decide to play with him. "Eddie have you heard about the Hot Firefighter Calendar?" I ask.

I glance at Buck and he's stares at me with his mouth gaped open. I smile at him. "Sorry the what?" "It's for charity." I state. Bobby laughs from the front seat. "So is your full name 'Eduardo?'" Buck asks. I tilt my head at his childish antics. "No." "People ever call you 'Diaz?'" He asks. "Not if they want me to respond." I crack a smile. "Something's gotta give. We go- we got Cap, Hen, Chimney, Bucky, Tiny. We can't just call you 'Eddie.'" "Can't tell if he's being serious or not." Eddie says to me. "I like to always operate under the assumption that nothing he says is serious." Eddie chuckles.

"The air nozzle is emended in his ass cheek." The employee informs us. In my line of work this is not the weirdest shit I've ever heard. "I shut it off but I was afraid to move him." "Okay Hector can you hear me?" Cap asks him. He looks like a balloon.

"Alright let's get him on his side. Maintain pressure on the wound." Cap orders. The guys pick them up. "On three. One two three." They lift him off of it. He screams in pain. "Okay. Easy easy." I look at the pressure tank to see exactly how much was being pumped into his body. "It's a hundred pounds per square inch of air pumped through his body." I inform.

"Breathings shallow hearts racing. Airs filled his stomach his chest even behind his eyelids." Hen says as she checks him out. "I'm more concerned about the space around his heart and lungs." "Okay Eddie start a nasal cannula. Chimney get him some morphine." Cap tells them, "I'm on it."

"It's like trying to inject a needle into stone." "The pressures pushing everything out. I can't even get air through the nostril." Eddie adds to Chims original statement. "Jugular venous distention tachycardia hypotension diminished breath we're looking at tension pneumothorax." Hen explains. "The air pressure is collapsing his organs. We need to get in there to drain the fluid. Buck I need you to get a 14-gauge antipathy. We need to start decomposing the pleural cavity." He tells him. He starts to do as he says.

"Want me to help?" Eddie offers. "I got it." "Hang in there Hector." Caps assures. "I'd go lower." Eddie says as Buck readies the needle, "what? Um no. Second intercostal space. Midclavicular line." Buck states. "The chest wall is thinner at the fifth intercostal at the anterior axillary line. There's a decreased chance of injuring any vital organs. I've- I've treated guys with collapsed lungs in combat." "Do it." Cap tells him. "Please." Eddie asks Buck he hands him the needle. I look at Buck and see his annoyed expression. "Can you help me out with the shirt?" He sticks him and air starts to hiss out of his body.

Hector wakes up. "That's it. Hector. Breathe nice and slow."

They take him away in the gurney. "How you feelin' Hector?" I ask. He holds a thumbs up and then I hear the sound of a fart. I groan "yeah you're good." "Pressures gotta go somewhere." Chim states. "It always dies." "Just get to the damn truck." I say hoarsely. They chuckle.

I get home late and walk to the kitchen. "Who's El Hottieo?" Raven says entering the kitchen and showing me her phone. "Eddie Diaz." I say taking a bottle of water. "Eddie Diaz? Sexy. And he has a kid even sexier." "No he don't." I state. "Yeah he does. When you guys asked him questions did he give engage in the conversation or give dry ass answers?" I think and hum. "I rest my case. Guys that do that are hiding something and at his big age it's probably a kid." She inquires. "Don't jump to conclusions." I state. "Alright but if I'm right you gotta give him my phone number." She states.