This scene from the season 6 episode 'Breakdown' takes place after Charlie ( the cranky mechanic who doesn't like anyone but him working on or repairing any of the rescue vehicles) discovers Roy and Johnny tried to find and fix a sporadic electrical fault with the squad which doesn't happen when he checks the squad. Some of the dialogue and some of the following scene within this one shot was taken directly from the show and credit should go to the show's talented writers. I also read that the fun line of "I made the coffee." which caught my attention was add-libbed in the episode by our favorite fire captain, Hank Stanley (Michael Norell), so this one shot is all his fault!
Emergency! Emergency! Emergency!
"This coffee stinks!"
I look at Charlie as he rises from his chair before I look back down at the unfinished mug of coffee. I look back up and watch, totally confused, as the mechanic stamps out the door. Turning back to my two paramedics, I eye them suspiciously and ask, "You guys playing some sort of joke on him?"
"We didn't make the coffee!" John answers with his mouth full of vanilla ice cream, sounding slightly insulted that somebody would or even could accuse either of them of making a bad cup of coffee.
"Not the coffee, you twit!" I tell him, trying to bring him back to the matter in hand as I redirect him, "The squad!"
"Captain! Captain, there's something wrong with the squad out there!" Roy jumps in, instantly reassuring me that their complaints about the squad are totally legitimate and not some sort of a joke that they are trying to pull on Charlie, just to get under the cranky mechanic's skin.
"All right, if you say so!" I sigh, looking down as I pick up my mug of coffee, aware that a joke like that would be more in line with something that our resident joker, Chet's alter ego, the Phantom, might pull. Although I have my doubts that even the Phantom would be willing to risk the mechanic's famous wrath, I know that Roy would never joke about something being wrong with the squad. It was just not something that Roy would ever think of doing, so if he said there was something wrong with the squad then I had no doubts there was. Pausing as I lift the mug up to my lips, I look across at Johnny as he takes another spoonful of ice cream and I admit softly, "I made the coffee."
I watch Johnny's eyes go wide at my admission before he snorts with laughter. I stare at him for a moment, unsure whether he is laughing at my admission after Charlie's complaint or at my coffee making skills. Lifting the mug to my lips, I do my best to ignore his snickering as I take a large sip of coffee. I almost choke on its unpalatable bitterness as I force myself not to instinctively spit the mouthful of coffee out but swallow it casually instead, aware that Johnny is watching me, fully enjoying my predicament.
Lowering my mug, I look across at him as I growl, "Don't you have some hoses to hang?"
"Ahh, yes Sir," he nods as he jumps up from the chair, grabbing his dish and mug and placing them in the sink before he turns and hurries out the back door to finish hanging the hoses with Mike.
Looking across at Roy who is watching me closely with his eyebrow cock, I pick up my coffee and try another small cautious sip, unable this time to hide my grimace. "Charlie's right," I find myself admitting to him as I jump up and hurriedly empty the contents of my mug into the sink before I turn back to him and smile, "This coffee stinks!"