Disclaimer: I don't own any of the station 51 characters. But I sure enjoy inviting them out to play. I promise to send them home in time for supper unless they get a call that is.
Where do I Begin
Hank sat on his favorite lawn chair in the shade of his freshly trimmed tree in his back yard. He was hot and sweaty and felt he had more than earned the tall glass of fresh lemonade his was sipping on. This was the last day of four days off and after spending the first two days playing games with his children he set to work getting the yard in order before he was to report on shift in the morning. It was early in the afternoon and Hank was debating on whether or not to take a quick nap before his children were to return home from School.
That's when his wife stepped out the back door, "Hank, phone, it's one of your men."
As Hank peeled himself out of his lawn chair he just knew he was going to hear some story about how one of his men weren't going to be able to make it to work in the morning and although as of yet he didn't know who, he was very suspicious that the man on the phone was John Gage.
"Hello," Hank picked up the phone.
"A Cap, this is John, I need a big favor." Hank smiled to himself his hunch had been right.
"Hi John, what kind of a favor?"
"I need to come up with a couple of witnesses' kind 'a quick and Roy's not due back in town till late this evening." John's voice was quick and panicked gaining Hank's complete attention.
"John, what you got going on there pal?"
"Cap, I'm a, I'm Getting Married and I need to have a couple of witnesses. Do you think your wife would come with you?" John rattled off his desperate sounding plea.
Hank was stunned to silence. Was this a joke? Not likely coming from John, unless it was directed at Chet.
"Cap? Cap, are you still there?" John called into the phone.
"Yeah, yeah pall, you know you should have made sure I was sitting down first. Did you say that you're getting married?"
"Yeah Cap, in three hours. Can you and your wife be witnesses?" John continued his repeated plea.
"Where are you at? There's no chance we can get across state lines in that length of time."
"NO, no we're at the court house down town," John corrected his Captain.
Hank took in and blew out a deep breath, "What's the big rush here pal? Is she nine months pregnant and going into labor or something?"
"No Cap, It's nothing like that, it's, it's, well, it's really complicated. Look I'm running out of time, can you help me out?"
"Hold on there a minute Pal, let me talk to my wife." Hank held the phone to his stomach and blew out another long deep breath, some days he was sure his men were going to turn him gray before his time.
Together he and his wife agreed that if John Gage wanted to get married they had no right to stand in his way. After telling John they would be there Hank hurried into the shower while he wife made arrangements for their children to be looked after while they were gone.
00000
While Hank was driving to the court house his thoughts drifted back to the last shift he had worked and remembered John had gotten a phone call the evening before they were off for four days. He returned from the dorm where he went for privacy clapping his hands together excitedly with the biggest smile on his face declaring that he was going to have a wonderful time off.
Hank and Emily walked into the court house hand in hand. Hank was anxiously trying to hurry his wife along as she was trying to slow him down just a little.
After asking at the information desk they were directed to a second floor court room where Hank could see Johnny pacing back and forth in the hallway as soon as he got off of the elevator.
Hank managed to walk up behind him unnoticed without trying and when he clapped his hand on John's shoulder John jumped.
"Hey Cap thanks for coming." John panted as he took hold of his captain's hand and shook it before running his hand through his hair. "I didn't expect you for another hour or so."
"Well I got to thinking that maybe we could get the crew together." Hank proposed, "This is a big day in your life I thought you might want to have your friends around for the occasion."
John was nervously shaking his head at Hank's suggestion, "No, no I don't think I could stand to have Chet around right now and it wouldn't be fair to Roy."
"Then why don't you just wait a day or two till Roy's back. I'm sure he'd like to see you take the plunge," Hank questioned still. Why on earth was his youngest paramedic in such a hurry to make a move that would affect the rest of his life.
"We can't wait, we have to do this today or we'll have to go through these last three days all over again." John's answer was more confusing than helpful but Hank wasn't sure he could expect much more from him at the moment.
John was dressed in a suit with his tie draped around his neck but untied and his top button undone. He was clearly nervous as Hank watched him run his hands through his hair and judging by how messed up it was it was clear he had been doing that a lot. John's frequent glances at the door to the women's room were Hank's only real clue.
"Do you need me to send my wife in there to check on someone?" Hank probed.
"NO, it's okay, she's not in there alone." Johnny stammered then began to pace once again.
"I have a delivery here for A Mister John Gage," a young man with a box of flowers announced as he stood in the middle of the hall watching to see who responded to the name he had called.
While Johnny was paying for the flowers the bathroom door opened and Hank was shocked to see Dr. Early stepping out of the women's bathroom followed closely by Dr. Bracket and another man carrying a doctor's bag. Dr. Bracket held the door open and soon appeared a young woman with dark straight hair that hung below her shoulders, she was working to button up her blouse as she walked but Hank still got a glimpse of an EKG electrode attached to her upper chest. Somehow without being told he knew this was the bride to be. She was dressed in a white silk blouse and a white skirt, she was very shapely, but that was something Hank would expect from his girl chasing paramedic. Hank was surprised by the scar on her cheek that ran past her mouth to her chin and when she turned to say something to Dixie McCall who was holding her up and helping her move forward, Hank saw a bigger scar down the side of her face that extended down her neck before turning along her shoulder and disappearing under her blouse.
There was clearly more to what was going on than Hank knew and he was beginning to feel rather uneasy about what he didn't know.
Once they had left the bathroom Dr. Brackett took hold of the woman's other arm and stepped forward allowing the bathroom door to close behind him. By the time they were in the middle of the hall John was pushing Dr. Bracket out of the way as he reached around behind the girl and with his hand on her waist pulled her close to his side and guided her the rest of the way to a bench against the wall where he carefully helped her to sit down.
Hank followed the crowd hoping for an introduction and after John had asked if she was okay she pointed out the new people in the crowd.
"Are these two your witnesses?" she asked nodding her head in the direction of Hank and his wife.
"Elise, I'd like you to meet my Captain and his wife." John pointed to Hank. "This is Captain Henry, we call him Hank, Stanley and his Wife Emily. Cap this is Elise Holbrook, soon to be Gage."
"Captain Stanley, Mrs. Stanley," Elise greeted, "It's nice to meet you, thank you for dropping everything to be here for John."
"Our pleasure," Emily quickly responded but Hank had some reservations.
"So you must be John's captain," Elise commented and Hank could tell that she was looking him over and watching his expressions closely.
"That I am, at least when he's on duty," Hank responded watching her just as closely as she was watching him.
"Well I have a mission for you, if you're willing to accept it." Elise replied and noticed the surprised look on Hank's face.
"What would that be?"
"Take this guy here," she playfully punched John in the shoulder, "Over there and try to talk him out of this."
Stunned by the request she had just made of him Hank took a moment to respond. "You do know don't you that if you don't want to marry him all you have to do is say no?" Hank responded finally.
"True," Elise replied, "The thing is though that I have everything to gain by this union, John here has everything to lose."
"That's not true," John spoke up quickly until Elise place her hand over his lips.
"This is a big move," She started to talk, "You owe it to yourself to talk it over with someone you trust first, and if this man is half the Captain you tell me he is, he knows you better than you know yourself. Go tell him the whole story and if he can't talk you out of this, then I know you're ready for what lay ahead. But right now I'm not so sure."