Disclaimer: All characters belong to HiT Entertainment.

Through Sam's Eyes

Night of the Norman

Series 11 Episode 10

"Aaachoo!"

"Bless you, Sam," Penny said automatically. Then, she looked up at me. "Are you feeling okay? You haven't caught the winter bug, have you?"

I chuckled. "I'm fine, Penny. It's just dust. I've just spent the past hour vacuuming Jupiter's cab. Oh, and Elvis?"

"Yes, Sam?"

"Can you please make sure that you remove your empty mint packets from the glovebox? I found four in there when I was cleaning Jupiter's cab."

"Sorry, Sam. I'll try to remember. How's your tea?"

"It's perfect, thanks."

It was a chilly early winter's evening, but it had been an unusually quiet Saturday in Pontypandy. Arnold was on leave, but the rest of us were on duty. Penny, Ellie and myself were halfway through a twenty-four hour shift, while Station Officer Steele and Elvis were preparing to end their twelve hour shift. We'd spent most of the afternoon cleaning the fire appliances and ensuring that our equipment was in perfect working order.

"I feel like having a takeaway dinner from the Wholefish Café," Ellie suggested.

"Good idea," Penny agreed. "It'll save us some washing up later. Are you in, Sam?"

I already had my mobile phone out. "Fish and chips?"

"With an assortment of sauces," Ellie said.

"Tomato, aioli and tartar?" I asked to confirm.

Penny and Ellie nodded. I dialled Bronwyn's number before holding the phone up to my ear. Bronwyn answered on the second ring.

"Hello, Sam. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to order a large serving of fish and chips with tomato, aioli and tartar sauces, please."

"You're on night duty again, aren't you?"

I chuckled. "However did you guess? I'll be there shortly to pick it up."

"See you soon, then."

I hung up my phone. "Would you like to come with, Penny?"

"Sure, why not?"

Penny and I stood up, and we headed downstairs to the Control Room. "Sir?" I called to Station Officer Steele from the doorway. "Penny and I are just going to go and fetch our dinner from the Wholefish Café. We'll be back in about fifteen minutes."

"Okay, Sam. Stay in radio contact."

"Will do, sir."

Penny and I continued downstairs to the appliance bay, and we got into Venus. I let Penny drive. As soon as she'd started Venus, I turned the heater on full blast.

"I'm glad Ellie suggested a warm dinner," I muttered.

"You can't be feeling that cold, surely?"

I shrugged. "You're not cold?"

"Not really. It's cool, but not intolerable. Are you sure you're feeling okay?"

"Of course." The truth was, I had been feeling tired all day. I assumed that it was because I hadn't had a very good night's sleep the night before. Although I hadn't been on duty, there had been two emergency callouts during the night, and the sound of the alarms and sirens had woken me both times. It was at times like that when I seriously wondered why I'd thought that it'd be a good idea to live in a house adjoining the fire station. Luckily, those busy nights were few and far between.

When we arrived at the Wholefish Café, Penny parked Venus and we went inside. Bronwyn was behind the counter, busily cooking our dinner for us. I immediately made a bee-line for Bronwyn's new heater, which was located just inside the doorway.

"Hello, Sam, Penny," Bronwyn greeted us.

"Hi Bronwyn," Penny replied. "That's a nice new heater you've got."

'Thanks, Penny."

"This should keep you nice and warm this winter, Bronwyn," I said. "It might stop you catching that nasty winter bug that's going around."

As if on cue, James entered the room and he sneezed. My poor nephew was pale and drawn, and his nose was red.

"Too late for that, Sam," Bronwyn replied. "Poor old James has already caught it."

James sneezed again. I was about to say something, when a voice on the radio caught our attention. "And now the perfect antidote to the grey weather, it's One Way Street with 'Shake up my Summer Go-Go'."

"Oh, I love One Way Street!" Penny exclaimed as the music began playing. I cringed and rolled my eyes. One Way Street was not my idea of good music. "This song is so catchy."

"It is catchy," Bronwyn agreed. She came out from behind the counter and started singing and dancing along with Penny.

"Shake up my summer go-go!"

"Come on, Sam. Join in!" Penny urged me.

"Er…This is not really my music, to be honest."

"Shake up my summer go-go!"

James sneezed again. I shook my head in disbelief. "Bronwyn, is our dinner ready yet? I would like to eat sometime tonight."

"Men!" Penny said playful to Bronwyn. "All they think about is their stomachs."

"I only think about mine when it's empty," I retorted. I folded my arms across my chest to emphasise my point.

Chuckling, Bronwyn made her way back behind the counter. "James, go and stand over near the heater and stay warm. Where's your sister?"

"Upstairs, talking on the phone to Hannah." Poor James' voice sounded so raspy and sore.

Bronwyn removed our order from the deep fryers, and she wrapped them in paper. "Oh, the sauces!" She took them out of the fridge and gave them to Penny.

After I'd paid for our meal, Penny and I left the café. A rumble of thunder sounded in the distance, followed by a flash of lightning.

"Hmm… Looks like we might get some rain tonight," I said as we climbed into Venus.

"Let's hope not." Penny started up Venus, and she started to drive back to the fire station. I sneezed again. Penny glanced at me with concern.

"Are you sure you're okay, Sam?"

"I'm perfectly fine, Penny."

But Penny didn't seem convinced. "Well, if you're sure… You do seem to be a bit more tired than usual."

"I didn't get much sleep last night, that's all." I cast her a reassuring smile. "If it helps you feel better, I'll go to bed early tonight."

Penny nodded her approval.

When we arrived back at the fire station, we found Ellie and Elvis outside, washing Phoenix. Penny parked Venus off to the side. I left our dinner on the front passenger seat to help keep it warm, while Penny and I went to see if they were ready for dinner. I smiled when I heard Ellie and Elvis humming.

"Hi Sam! Hi Penny!" Elvis greeted us. "Guess what? We're having a night-duty danceathon!" And he chuckled.

"Sounds great Elvis!" I replied enthusiastically, trying to sound better than I really felt. Maybe a bit of dancing will help warm me up. "What are you dancing to?"

Penny joined Ellie and Elvis, and the three of them began singing. "When the sun is night and hot, come and party on my yacht. Wake up. Shape up! Shake up my summer go-go!"

"Oh, it's going to be a long night!" I groaned as I facepalmed myself. Then, I smiled wearily at my friends. "I think I'll go inside and get our dinner ready."

"Oh, before you do that, Sam, could you please put the training hoses away?" Elvis asked. "They're out the back."

"Sure, I can do that," I agreed. The sooner we get our chores done, the sooner we can eat, and the sooner I can get to bed.

I went out behind the building. Five training hoses were rolled out on the ground, because they'd been drying all afternoon. I set about rolling them up and putting them away.

Finally, I finished rolling up the last hose, and I carried it over to the appliance bay. A cold breeze whipped around me, making me shiver. "Ooh! It must be the coldest night of winter. I can't wait for summer."

I immediately regretted saying that, because Ellie, Elvis and Penny were now inside the appliance bay, cleaning up. Upon hearing me mention of the word 'summer', Penny began singing that infernal song again.

"When the sun is nice and hot…"

"Come and party on my yacht…" Ellie continued.

Elvis also joined in. "Wake up! Shape up!"

"Shake up my summer go-go!" the three of them sang in unison.

Station Officer Steele walked up behind them. "Great tangled hoses! What's going on here?"

Knowing that I was responsible for crew discipline, I immediately apologised. "I'm sorry, sir. The crew were just having a little sing-along."

"Well, why didn't someone tell me?" Station Officer Steele snapped. Then, he changed his tone to a much kinder one. "This song is my favourite!"

"Shake up my summer go-go!"

"Catchy, isn't it?" Station Officer Steele asked me.

I stared at my colleagues and my boss in surprise. I hoped the question was rhetorical, because I was completely speechless. Shaking my head slightly, I carried the hose over to one of the lockers, and I put it away. "Let's have dinner now, while it's still hot."

"Good idea, Sam," Ellie agreed. "I'm starving!"

I returned to Venus to retrieve our dinner. Minutes later, we were all gathered around the kitchen table upstairs, tucking in.

"Bronwyn cooks the best fish and chips," Ellie said as we were eating. "You're lucky to have her as your sister-in-law, Sam."

"I know."

Thunder crashed loudly outside, followed by a flash of lightning.

"I think that storm's getting closer," Elvis muttered.

Penny frowned. "Hopefully it won't cause any emergencies tonight."

Once we'd finished dinner, Station Officer Steele returned downstairs to the Control Room. Elvis and Ellie went into the lounge area to watch TV. Penny and I remained at the kitchen table to enjoy a quiet cup of tea and a chat. I was feeling much better now that I was warm and had eaten a filling dinner. We were halfway through drinking our tea, when we heard the alert alarm go off downstairs.

"Oh no," I muttered as I set my cup down.

"Norman Price has set off a flare and caused a fire in the Flood's house," Station Officer Steele announced over the loudspeakers. Then, the alarm sounded.

Penny, Ellie, Elvis and I leapt up, and we sprinted across the room to the fireman's poles. Once we were all downstairs, we donned our firefighting uniforms. I thought about the emergency while I put on my uniform. Norman must have set off the flare inside the house. How on earth did he even get his hands on a flare anyway? At any rate, I'm sure this will be a big fire.

"Elvis and Ellie, you two take Venus," I instructed. "Penny, you come with me in Jupiter. Ellie, I want you as BA monitor."

"Okay, Sam," Ellie agreed. Then, she hurried over to Venus.

I climbed into Jupiter's driving seat and I fastened my seatbelt. Penny got into the passenger seat. While I started up Jupiter, Penny pressed the button to open the roller door and she activated the lights and sirens. As soon as the door was up, I drove Jupiter out of the appliance bay. Ellie and Elvis followed us in Venus.

The drive to the Flood's house was short. When we arrived, I parked Jupiter in the driveway, and I jumped down from the cab. I frowned when I realised that nobody was outside, which meant that they must still be inside. I grabbed my BA equipment out of one of Jupiter's lockers, and I put it on. Penny followed my lead.

Once I was ready to go inside, I handed my tag to Ellie, who slipped it into the electronic monitoring board.

"Firefighter Sam, air, one-hundred percent," the digital board announced. Penny also handed over her tag.

I secured my oxygen mask over my face, and I turned on the oxygen. "Elvis and Ellie, you fight the fire from outside. Penny and I will rescue anyone inside."

"Right, Sam," Elvis agreed.

I grabbed two fire extinguishers from Jupiter's locker, and I gave one to Penny. Then, we ran over to the front door. I tried turning the handle, but the door wouldn't open. "The door's blocked," I told Penny. "Stand back!"

Using my left foot, I gave the door a hard push. It opened wide enough for me to get the fire extinguisher inside. Behind the door was a large pile of furniture. Frustrated, I pushed again, using my left-hand shoulder for leverage this time. Once the door was open wide enough for me to get in, I sprayed some CO2 into the room.

"Pondie!" I heard Norman scream. He pointed at me.

"Calm down, Norman, it's just me," I told him. Penny followed me inside.

"Help!" a high-pitched voice called from overhead.

"That sounds like Mandy." I looked at Penny. "You take Norman and Mike out, Penny. I'm going up."

As I headed over to the stairs, I saw a laundry hamper on fire. I dowsed it with CO2. Once it was out, I put the fire extinguisher down before making my way upstairs. Most of the smoke had drifted upstairs, making it difficult to see. However, I knew the layout of the Flood's house well enough to find my way using only the light from my torch. When I reached Mandy's bedroom door, I was surprised to find that the doorknob was missing.

"Help!" Mandy called again. Then she coughed. "It's getting smoky in here."

"Keep low, Mandy," I instructed. "And stay back from the door. I'm coming in." And with that, I slammed against the door with my left-hand shoulder. It opened easily. Mandy sat up off the floor, looking relieved. I knelt in front of her, placing my hands around her chest. "You're safe now, Mandy," I reassured her. Then, I gently picked her up, and I carried her downstairs.

The fire was pretty much out by the time I carried Mandy outside. I smiled as I removed my oxygen mask. Everyone was safe, and the fire hadn't caused too much damage.

Helen drove into the driveway. She parked her car and got out. She looked surprised to see us. "Oh, dear!" she exclaimed as she went over to Mike and Mandy. "What's going on?"

"Norman almost burnt our house down!" Mandy told her. She sounded angry and upset. "And…" she coughed. "I think I'm sick."

"You must have caught the winter bug," Helen diagnosed. She placed a hand on Mandy's forehead, checking her temperature. "James and Hannah have got it too."

"So they weren't 'pondies', Norman," Mandy said, turning to face him. "Everyone is just sick!"

"I knew that," Norman muttered sadly.

I stormed over to him. "Flares are very dangerous things, Norman, and should never be fired inside a house!"

"I'm sorry, Sam," Norman apologised. "I think that scary movie might have been a bit too scary."

"I know what will make you forget all about it, Norman," Penny said cheerfully. "A good sing-along!"

"Oh, no!" I muttered, knowing exactly what was coming.

Penny started singing. "When the sun is nice and hot…"

"Come and party on my yacht…" Ellie continued.

"Wake up. Shape up!" Elvis sang.

"Shake up my summer go-go!" everyone sang and danced in unison.

"Oh! That song is more horrible than a pondy bug!" Norman groaned.

I placed a hand on his shoulder. "You know, Norman? For once, I actually agree with you."

"Wake up. Shape up! Shake up my summer go-go!" everyone sang again.

Shaking my head, I removed my BA gear, and I carried it over to Jupiter. I'd just placed it back inside the locker, when I sneezed again.

"Oh, no! Not you too, Sam!" Helen exclaimed.

"I'm perfectly fine, Helen." I slammed the locker's roller door shut. Then, I coughed.

Helen hurried over to me, and she felt my forehead like she'd done with Mandy. "Well, you're not feverish, so that's a good sign."

"I'm not sick, Helen," I insisted, but I couldn't hide the fatigue from my voice. Her expression showed that she didn't believe me.

"Sam, you're coughing and sneezing, and you look exhausted. I think you're coming down with the winter bug too."

I shook my head, not wanting to believe it. "I can't get sick. You gave me the flu vaccine, remember?"

"The flu vaccine won't stop a cold, Sam," Helen explained.

"It's just the change from the cold air outside to the warm air inside," I explained. "I admit that I'm a bit tired, but that's because I didn't get much sleep last night. I'm sure I'll be fine."

"All right, Sam," Helen reluctantly agreed. "Take care of yourself. I'll stop by the fire station in the morning to see how you are. Hopefully, you're right."

I hope I'm right too, I thought as I climbed into Jupiter's cab. I was about to close the door, when Penny stopped me.

"Sam? You know the rules about driving when you're tired."

I let out an exasperated sigh. Then, I nodded in agreement. "Yes, you're quite right. You can drive us back."

I scooted across the bench seat, so that I was sitting in the middle of the cab, and I fastened my seatbelt. Ellie opened the passenger-side door.

"Sam? Can you and Penny drop Norman home, please?"

"Of course. Come on up, Norman," I invited.

Norman climbed inside, and Ellie closed the door. I sighed heavily as I removed my helmet.

"I am really sorry, Sam," Norman told me.

"I know…" I closed my eyes, hoping to snatch a quick nap before we started driving back to the fire station. Unfortunately, that's when the radio crackled.

"Sam? It's Station Officer Steele. What's the situation? Over."

I picked up the handset and held it to my mouth. "The fire is out and we're about to head back now, sir. We'll drop off Norman on our way. Over."

"Right, well hurry up, please. I want to sign off and get home."

"Copy that, sir." And I placed the handset back on its hook.

I glanced in the right-hand rear-view mirror. The equipment had been packed up, but Penny and Ellie were talking to Helen. Reaching over, I pressed Jupiter's horn once. The short blast caught Penny's attention, and she quickly ended the conversation.

"Sorry," I apologised as Penny climbed into the driver's seat. "Station Officer Steele wants to go home."

"I heard." She started up Jupiter's engine. Once Ellie had moved Venus out of the way, Penny reversed Jupiter onto the road. Then, she drove back towards town.

"How come you're not driving, Sam?" Norman asked.

"I don't always drive," I replied, not wanting to tell him the whole truth.

"Oh. Can I put the siren on?"

"No, Norman!" I snapped. "Just sit there and don't touch anything! You've caused enough trouble tonight."

Norman slumped in a huff. Minutes later, we arrived at the Cutprice Supermarket. I stayed inside Jupiter's warm cab while Penny took Norman inside. She returned a few minutes later.

"Norman's in even more trouble now," Penny told me. "Apparently, Dilys had sent him to the café to get dinner, but he didn't come back, so she had to send Derek to get it. They've already eaten, so Norman's missed out. Sam?"

"I heard you. What's the time?" I glanced at my watch.

"Nine thirty-five." Penny answered before I could read my watch. "Let's get you back to the station so you can rest."

By the time Penny and I had arrived back at the fire station, Station Officer Steele had gone, which meant that I was now in charge. However, I was so exhausted, I nearly collapsed on the stairs. Penny had to help support me.

"I really think you should go home, Sam," Penny urged. "Ellie and I can manage."

"No, I just need to sleep for a few hours…"

Elvis emerged from the Control Room. "Oh, there you are, Sam! We've just set up your cot for you, so you can go to bed whenever you're ready."

"Thank you, Elvis," I muttered.

"Well, I'll be off then. Goodnight!"

"'Night, Elvis," Penny replied.

We entered the Control Room. Ellie had just finished placing my sleeping bag on the cot. "Here you go, Sam."

"Thanks, Ellie. I hope you and Penny will be comfortable upstairs."

"Don't worry about us, Sam," Penny reassured me. "You just go to bed. Ellie and I are going to watch chick-flicks."

"Well, keep it down, please."

Penny turned out the light as she and Ellie left the room. I still had plenty of light to see by, thanks to the Map Screen-700 and the streetlights outside. With a weary sigh, I sat down on the cot. I'd hung up my firefighting uniform on the rack downstairs, so I was only wearing my station uniform now. I kicked off my boots and removed my belt before I flopped down on my side on the cot. Within seconds, I was fast asleep. I hadn't even bothered to get inside my sleeping bag.

…

The next thing I was aware off was the delicious smell of breakfast cooking. I was sure I could detect bacon and toast. Then, I heard someone shuffling papers around on Station Officer Steele's desk. Rather reluctantly, I opened my eyes and I looked around. Station Officer Steele was seated at his desk, working. He looked up with he heard me stir.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," he teased. "Penny said you weren't feeling well last night. You should've said something. I would've sent you home and had Elvis fill in for you."

I sat up slowly, wiping the sleepy dust from my eyes. "I wasn't sick. Just fatigued. I'm feeling much better now though."

"Good, because you were dead to the world when I arrived about an hour ago. Go and have some breakfast, then you can sign off from duty."

I shook my head. "I have a report to write before I go."

"Penny's already done it. Sam, I want you to go home and have plenty of rest today. I'll expect you back on duty tomorrow morning."

"Yes, sir." I glanced at my watch. It was about a quarter to nine, which was the time I usually woke up. Then, I pulled on my boots. I think I'll try and get some more sleep after I've tidied up at home.

Someone knocked on the open door. Looking up, I saw Helen standing there.

"Sorry to interrupt, Station Officer Steele," Helen began. "I was concerned about Sam last night, so I told him I'd stop by to check on him this morning."

Station Officer Steele nodded in agreement. "Go right ahead, Helen. He's just about to go home anyway."

Helen came over to me, and she set her nursing bag down on my cot. "How are you feeling this morning, Sam? You look more alert than you did last night."

"That's because I slept well. Honestly, Helen, last night I was worried that I might have been coming down with something, but it seems that all I needed was a solid night's sleep to fight it off."

Helen nodded. "If you don't mind, I'll just listen to your lungs to ensure they're not congested. You were sneezing and coughing a bit last night."

As Helen put on her stethoscope, I untucked my shirt. Then, I turned sideways so she could place the disc against my back. Helen listened to my lungs, moving the disc around every few seconds.

"Can you cough for me please?" Helen asked.

I forced myself to cough twice. Helen patted my shoulder, and then she put her stethoscope away. I started to tuck my shirt back in.

"Nothing. You're fine."

"I did try to tell you…"

"I know. Sorry. I just worry about you, especially after your accident last winter."

I nodded in understanding as I put on my belt. "It's okay, Helen. I understand your concerns. Thanks for coming."

Penny peeked into the room. "Breakfast is ready! You're welcome to join us, Helen."

"Thanks, but I've already had breakfast. I'd better get going anyway. Make sure you get plenty of rest tonight, Sam."

"I will."

Helen's phone rang as she was leaving the room. She quickly answered it. "Nurse Flood. Oh, hello Dilys… Okay, I'll be there shortly. Keep Norman in bed until I get there…"

I smiled at Penny. "Sounds like Norman's the one who's caught the winter bug now."

"Serves him right after the fire he caused last night."

"Yes… Let's go and have breakfast before Ellie eats it all."