Stand By Me

Ten

Sat at the table in the rec room with the rest of truck, Taylor flicked through a sports magazine and looked up as Boden walked in with two fresh-faced candidates in tow.

"Listen up, the is Rebecca Ferguson and Aaron Porter," Boden explained, "They will be joining us for the next six months, learning the ropes of 51 and seeing if they have what it takes to survive in the CFD. Taylor, I'll leave you in charge of introductions..."

"Chief," Taylor replied with a nod, standing up and moving over to the newcomers with a smile, "So, introductions... this is the truck crew, Otis, Cruz, Herrmann, Mouch, Mills, and our fearless leader Lieutenant Casey."

"Welcome to 51," Matt added as Taylor led them out onto the apparatus floor.

"Out here we have squad, Capp, Tony, Hadley, and Lieutenant Severide," Taylor introduced, rolling her eyes at the starstruck look on Porter's face, "Kel, I found you a new admirer."

"Hey, I thought you were my admirer," Kelly argued.

"Admiration is like wisdom, you have to pass it on to the next generation eventually," Taylor teased with a wink, causing squad to chuckle and turning her attention back to the candidates, "Our paramedics are currently out on a call, so I will introduce you to Dawson and Shay once they get back."

After a quick tour of the firehouse, Taylor took the newcomers back to the rec room and handed them both some food. She had just sat down to eat, when the alarms went off and she rushed out to the truck.

"Ferguson, you'll go with truck," Boden shouted as he headed towards the battalion SUV, "Porter, ride with squad."

With a chuckle, Taylor sent Kelly a grin and waited for Rebecca to join them before closing the door. Flames licked the charred windows of the house as they arrived on the scene, stepping back instinctively when one of the upstairs windows exploded outwards and sent shards of glass raining down on the garden below.

"Cruz, take Ferguson and Mills with you to vent," Matt instructed as everyone grabbed their gear, "The rest of us will do a primary search of the house."

Putting on her mask, Taylor followed Matt inside and immediately started calling out for any victims that needed help. Not finding anyone, she signaled to the others that she was heading upstairs and carefully ascended the steps.

"Firefighter, call out..." Taylor shouted, searching the first two rooms at the end of the hall and finding nothing.

Finally reaching the last room, she swept it and went to join the others on the ground floor. The remainder of the search turned up nothing and they cleared out, removing their masks as engine 51 dealt with the fire.

"Taylor, do you remember what the first thing I taught you as a candidate was?" Matt asked as they all stood around with squad.

"Squad's heads are too big for their helmets," Taylor replied with a frown.

"After that..." Matt prompted with a grin.

"We go into every fire expecting the worst, but firefighting isn't always about saving lives and sometimes a fire is just a fire."

Sat in the truck as they headed back to the firehouse, Taylor listened as the older guys told Rebecca stories and imparted their own words of wisdom.

"Taylor, do you remember your first fire?" Rebecca inquired as they got off the truck, causing Taylor to freeze and nod in response, "What was it like?"

"I'm probably not the best person to ask."

"I think they'd benefit from hearing something that we as firefighters have to deal with," Boden encouraged.

"I wasn't at 51 when I first left the academy, but my first fire was at a house a lot like the one we just came from..."

"What happened?" Aaron asked as squad joined them.

"The fire was already out of control by the time we got there and the family inside didn't stand a chance," Taylor told them, swallowing past the lump in her throat and continuing, "They teach you so much at the academy, but nothing can prepare you for your first fatality and the overwhelming guilt you feel for not being able to save them."

Unsure of what else to say, Taylor retreated into the locker room before anyone could speak and sat down on the bench with her head in her hands. Four people had died in the fire that day and it was something that Taylor would never forget, but she had seen enough good on the job to know that they made a difference.

Taking a deep breath, she headed back to the rec room to eat and nodded when Kelly sent her a look that silently asked if she was okay. Someone had already made her a fresh plate of food, which she took to the table and took a seat. No longer feeling hungry, she simply pushed the food around on her plate and looked up as Matt nudged her shoulder.

"Are you okay?""Yeah, I just need to get some air," Taylor mumbled, standing up and walking outside.Leaned up against the front of the truck, she glanced up as Kelly joined her and pulled her into his arms without a word.