Seeking a fresh start, Hestia Ashford leaves her life in Chicago for Los Angeles. Yet, the past always finds a way to catch you, no matter how far you run away. As she navigates the blurred lines between duty and deception, she may just find a new f...
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LAX, Los Angeles Airport. Day One. 21:48.
Standing outside the airport, she could finally let herself relax. That was it. The new beginning she had put so much hope into was no longer just an unattainable hope. The feeling of the blazing sun on her skin was almost enough to make her forget what she had left behind. While leaving was her only solution, it wasn't an easy decision to take. Despite everything, Chicago had been her home for the past fifteen years. A home that was now filled with ghosts and suffering rather than the love and laughter she once knew. Maybe that was what made it so difficult to leave: the memories. Everything that had once been.
She sighed. Physically leaving did not mean that her mind would not wander there again. There was still a long road ahead of her. One step at a time, she reminded herself. Focus on what you can control. What she could control right now was getting into downtown L.A., checking into her hotel, and then sleeping. She will need all the rest she can get for her first shift tomorrow.
Firehouse 118, Los Angeles. Day Two. 06:40.
Walking into her new fire station, she first noticed the differences between this station and her previous one in Chicago. The apparatus floor was bigger and shinier. Even the trucks seemed brand new. Well, that would be a change. While uncomfortable, riding in engines from the 2000s had its fun. Well, the driver and his reactions made it fun.
"Excuse me, can I help you?" someone asked.
She had been so engrossed in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed that she was not alone on the apparatus floor. She turned around to face her interlocutor.
"Yes. I'm looking for Captain Nash."
"Cap is making breakfast upstairs. Follow me!" The man replied cheerfully, way too cheerfully, leading the way. "You must be our new recruit," he continued. "I'm Buck."
"Nice to meet you, Buck," she smiled, his energy influencing hers. "I'm Hestia."
"Welcome to the 118!"
Upstairs, Buck led her to the kitchen area where the Captain was making pancakes. She could not help but smirk as Buck tried to steal one, only to be stopped by a playful blow of the spatula on the back of his hand.
"That was mean," he whined before introducing her to the fire captain.
"Welcome to the 118, Firefighter Ashford," the Captain smiled, taking his eyes off the stove. "I hope Buck didn't talk your ears off."
The sight of her captain's face felt like a slap. As it turned out, instead of running away from her past and the ghosts haunting her life, she ran right into it.
"It's nice to meet you, Captain. But please, call me Hestia," she smiled, willing her heart to stop beating so fast.
