Disclaimer: I don't own anything 'In A Heartbeat' related whatsoever. I only own the story, and the characters that I made up. As for the title, it is a famous play, but the story has nothing to do with the play. Just read on, and you'll see what I mean.

A/N: Okay, everyone, this is the 5th installment of the NOEbY series. For those of you who have not read the four previous stories yet, I highly recommend that you do. I think it's definitely worth reading. I'll just list the stories so far as they came along:

1 - No One Else but You

2 - The Odd Man Out

3 - A Date to Remember

4 - Parent Trap

If you haven't read any of these, a quick way would be to go to the link on my pen name, and you can find them there. As for those of you who have read the other stories, thank you for bearing with me : ) I really appreciate it. And without further ado, here's…

West Side Story

A Little Break Won't Hurt

It was a late Friday afternoon in mid-to-late March. Although winter is just about over, Mother Nature always gets her way, and she is not letting the winter season go by without one final turn to cause some havoc.

"Can you believe this weather?" Jamie said as they had just finished administering one of the many emergencies throughout the day. "It's like hell out there."

"It's more like hell frozen over," said Val. "Without the ice, of course. I mean, would you look at this wind. I hope the ambulance doesn't turn over."

Hank, who was in the passenger seat, quickly buckled his seat belt. Jamie laughed.

"So much for being Mr. Safety," he said.

"Laugh all you want, but I won't be the one sorry if he goes flying out the door when the ambulance crashes."

"Guys, would you cut it out?" Tyler said as he started to get nervous. "You're making me anxious. It's hard enough watching the road already. And saying when the ambulance crashes instead of if it crashes is really not helping."

"Where did this blizzard come from anyway?" asked Val. "We haven't seen one of these in years."

"Maybe it came down south from New England. Most of the time, these storms don't really give us much damage because of the Appalachian Mountains covering their path."

"How many more calls do you think we'll have?" asked Jamie.

As faith would have it, they received another call.

"This is vehicle 156, please respond," said Hank.

"We have an emergency off Saddle Drive. A car slipped and crashed into a post. Two are reportedly injured."

"We're on it," Hank responded as Tyler quickly headed towards the street.

"This is going to be a long day," Jamie murmured. "So much for the start of Spring Break."

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By the time they finished their shift, it was already seven in the evening. When they returned to the station, all of them crashed into the nearest chair after almost five hours of nonstop work.

"Remind me again why we're doing this," Hank said. "I think I forgot after that seventh call that we got."

"I believe the reason went along the lines of saving lives on step at a time," Alex said when he overheard him.

"Thanks Alex for that overworked line."

"So, how's the outside world?"

"It's chaos out there," said Tyler. "Visibility is down, and the rain is not helping."

"How many calls did you guys get?"

"I lost count after five-thirty," said Jamie. "Luckily, no one was seriously hurt."

"I really appreciate that you four stayed on your job for an extra two hours."

"You owe us," Val said. "Really, it wasn't a big deal. Time just flew right by us."

"Another team is handling the calls now, so there shouldn't be any other need for you four here. You're dismissed."

All of them gave sighs of relief as they stood up to gather their belongings.

"Tyler, can I talk to you for a second?" asked Alex.

"Am I in trouble?" he asked.

"No, it's not that. I just need to discuss something with you in private."

"Okay," he said. "I'll be there in a minute."

Alex nodded and left before the rest of the squad bombarded him with questions.

"What was that all about?" asked Val.

"I don't know."

"You better hurry," Hank said. "It's not good to keep the boss waiting."

Tyler left and knocked on Alex's door.

"Come in," he said. "Sit down."

"What's up?"

"I just had a talk with your mother."

"About what?"

"Well, first off, you have a special telegram that came in this morning. Actually, your mother dropped it by before she left on her trip with William. Here."

"What is it?" Tyler asked as he took the envelope. "A letter from college?"

"Not quite. Just read it."

Tyler opened the envelope and read the letter carefully.

"This has got to be a joke," he said. "Is this for real?"

"Well, your mom said so, and I don't think your father would joke about something like that."

"Well, it's a great opportunity and all that, but I have duties here at the station."

"Which is why I called you down here," Alex said. "I've decided that you deserve a break after all your hard work. It's also your Spring Break, and it won't be fair if I let you stay here in this harsh weather instead of going to California."

"So you're letting me go?"

"That's what I said."

Tyler stood up with delight before turning once more to Alex.

"Wait, my dad wrote that I can bring some friends with me," Tyler said with hope in his voice. "Can I bring the three with me?"

"I was afraid you were going to say that," Alex said. "I'm just telling you right now that you four are the best that we have."

"Is that a yes or a no?"

"Well, to show you my appreciation, I will allow Jamie, Hank, and Val to have some time off as well, but you have to ask them first, and they need to get approval from their parents."

"So you're letting us go?"

"Call me crazy, but I am."

"Thank you so much, Alex! This is really great."

"You're welcome. You better hurry. Your plane leaves on Sunday."

"Thank you. I promise to return in a week."

"You better. Now go on so I can get back to my work here. I'll see you in a week."

"Bye."

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When Tyler returned to the locker room, everyone was just about ready to go.

"I need to talk to you guys before you leave."

"Is it something important?" Jamie said. "I'm meeting Caitie at her house in fifteen minutes."

"And Marianne is waiting for me at the pizza parlor," said Hank.

"What are you doing over the break?" he asked all of them.

"Well, I'm staying here, I guess," said Val. "My family is not going anywhere, so I'll probably spend the rest of my time here."

"Same here," said Hank.

"And here," added Jamie. "Why? Do you have something else in mind?"

"What do you say about a trip to the Golden State?"

"I say that's great, but I don't have that much cash to spare," said Hank. "Why? Are you going there?"

"Actually, my dad invited me to spend the break in California."

"That's great," said Val. "You didn't have to ask our permission."

"Guys, I think he wants us to come with him," Jamie said with a smile on his face. "If you are, then I'm definitely in. That would be awesome."

"Really?" said Val. "You want us to come with you?"

"There's no pressure, but I would really love it if you all could come."

"I have to ask my dad first," said Hank. "What about work?"

"Alex gave me permission to go for a week, and he'll give you the same privilege if your parents agree that you could come with me," Tyler replied. "There's no pressure whatsoever, but my dad offered to pay the tickets, and the plane leaves on Sunday."

"What about Caitie?" asked Jamie.

"And Marianne?" followed Hank.

"If you and Val are just going to be drooling over each other, then count me out," said Jamie.

"I second that," said Hank.

Val and Tyler both turned into shades of red before Tyler spoke.

"If they want to come, then they can come. My dad didn't really say how many people I can bring. I'm sure my dad will agree if I ask him. Besides, the more the merrier. "

"A little break won't hurt," said Jamie as they headed out the door. "One problem, though."

"What?" asked Tyler.

"How can we let our parents agree?" Jamie replied, referring to the rest of the group. "Especially Caitie and Marianne."

"We'll have to make it up as we go along. We only have one more day to convince everybody."

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Did you like it so far? You can probably guess where this is heading. Please review! I'll be back! ~ Scarlet182