Hello my dearest readers! Hope you're doing fine :D

As requested by some fans (especially one who will recognize herself), I wrote this chapter today. I didn't write it before because I had no inspiration and I can't write without it (as many writers I guess). So I had a wave of inspiration this afternoon so I decided to share this with you.

I hope you will like the chapter, and I will write another one as soon as I can.

Have a nice reading^^


Chapter 26: Tears of joy

Someone destroying a door with a crowbar, a baby crying. A place devored by flames and ready to fall apart by them. It seemed to be a nightmare. This someone, it was Matt. As a firefighter. He opened the door to the back of the living room and put down his crowbar. There was a crib in the middle of the bedroom in which was resting a baby, a little girl. He then began to approach the crib and the still crying child.

"Hold on sweety, hold on".

He unbuttoned his gear, taking the little girl in his arms to place her on his chest and wrap her in his clothes, taking great care that no part of her body came out of his jacket. He turned around to get out of the building, but he stopped: the entry of the apartment was on fire and he couldn't pass. Despite this, to successfully get out, he had to go into the flames. He instictively presse this girl in his arms still crying on his shirt, he took a deep breath and started running. He ran toward those huge flames, jumping over them to arrive to the other side. Once done, he continued to hold his breath until reaching the stairs. He went down the first floor as he radio crackled, revealing Boden's voice.

"Casey! I need an update!"

His voice... Matt could feel his concern. From the outside, the situation had to be very hard to experience for everyone. He took a breath, still running and screamed.

"Almost there!"

He then looked to the left toward others apartments then to the right toward the stairs. Everywhere there were flames, destruction and blaze, but he had to act quickly, for his own safety but also for this little child's one. Asking for a ladder would take too long and he didn't have time. He had more chance to get out by the entry door faster than with a ladder, and he could feel that the building was ready to collapse. He chose the right, going down the stairs with the baby in hands. He took some heavy breaths, hearing the wood cracking because of the heat. Time was running out. Once down the stairs, he was ready to reach the exit, but a piece of ceiling collapsed right in front of him and avoided him to go further. Someone had his attention above him: this same noise he was hearing since the beginning, but louder this time. He raised his head, just to see a huge steel beam arriving ever faster on him. In an instinct, not to save his life but to protect the little girl no matter what, he arched over her while trying to throw himself to the ground. Sunddenly, this beam crashed on his neck with such extraordinary violence that he lost consciousness. He regained his senses only when his pass device began to scream interspersed by the cries of this child he was still holding in his arms. He could feel the weight of the veam on his right side and his shoulder, a sharp pain was slashing his nack and head, radiating in every cells of his body. He had never felt such pain in his life.

"Casey, call out!"

Although he had recognized Boden's voice, Matt was unable to pronounce any word, too focussed on trying to breathe as normal as possible despite the pain.

"Casey!"

His ears were ringing, he felt something running down his right temple, going down to his neck slowly. His mask was spotted red. He understood than at this precise moment that it wasn't sweat that was streaming down his face, it was his own blood. The shock with the beam had been so violent that he was bleeding. Everything around him was just flamed and some moving forms approchaing in slow motion. These forms came closer faster, spreading around him.

"Hold on Casey! We're here!"

Someone placed his hand on his right shoulder to stop his pass device.

"Come on guys! Come on!" Boden screamed.

Everyone took the beam, trying to lift it to free Matt and this child crying as never. At least, she was crying, it was a good thing, it meant she was still alive. But with his screaming and ringing earms, Matt couldn't bear such a torture anymore.

"Come on! Harder!"

Everyone yelled, giving all their strength and energy to lift the beam and free them.

"Come on guys! Pull him! Get him out of here!"

Two of his brothers grabbed his jacket at his shoulders and pulled, freeing him.

"We got you Casey! We got you!"

Matt didn't think: he was conscious, he felt able to walk and get out of this hell alone. So he leaned on his elbow to get on his knees, he put a foot down and got up. A wave of dizziness hit him straight. He deviated to the left as he tried to stay up the as long as possible while moving forward. He was increasingly struggling to breathe properly, his body was aching, but the safety and the survey of this little girl on his arms was the most important thing for him right now. Because he promised the mother. He promised to save her baby. He staggered until reaching the entrance, the images in front of him becoming deformed, blurred and completely foggy. Once out, the light blinded him for some mirroseconds, forcing him to slow down. He saw the grid and focussed on passing it. He felt his legs becoming weak, strength was leaving him gradually. He couldn't stand anymore. He still endeavored to pass the grid before collapsing on his knees. He saw a shadow coming towards him, runing with his arms wide open.

"Oh God".

Although he didn't recognize this body, he had perpectly recognized this voice despite his ringing ears: Gabby. She stooped to him in tears to take the child, but Matt did not let her go. It only lasted a few seconds, but Gabby managed to loosen his grip on the girl to take her in her arms.

"Got her!"

He looked her being moved away from him before letting go. His mission was over, the baby was saved. He felt his eyes close after yet another wave of dizziness. He felt his body fall forward and hit the ground. And then nothing.


When Matt abruptly opened his eyes, nothing seemed consistent for him. Everything was different: smells, sounds, things around him. He took a full deep breath that hurt his chest, straightening as he could beofre being stop but a soft hand at the base of his neck.

"Matt?! Matt!"

He understood nothing, nothing at all.

"Matt, listen to my voice Matt! Everything is okay, everything is okay. Listen to my breath and try to follow me".

He clsoed his eyes, the world around him was blurry, dizziness and nausea were here ans were disturbing him. He could here over these awful noises coming to his ears a very hard breathing. A deep inspiration through a nose, then a huge slow exhalation through a mouth. But above all, he'd recognized this voice, Kelly's one. Despite his shape, he knew he could trust him. Then he complied: he took the greatest inspiration he could through the nose helping by the breathing machine still in place, and exhaled very slowly through his mouth. Soon, these distrubing screams fadded, and just some beeps were bothering him.

"You're doing great Matt, keep going".

Kelly's voice was calm, reassuring, soft. He felt good despite this fright he'd just had.

"Matt? Everything okay?"

It was a woman's voice, one he knew for sure.

"All good Emily. Bad awakening, that's all".

Matt was still breathing deeply like his best friend and finally decided to open his eyes. Fighting a blurred vision again, he waited a few seconds so that his eyes could be used to the light. Kelly was beside him, squeezinf ans stroking his hand to calm him down while he saw Emily coming closer to check if all was indeed good before leaving the room.

"Flashback?"

Matt looked down then nodded slightly.

"The accident again?"

This time, he shook his head from side to side slowly.

"I... I already had... An accident with my head... Am I right?"

He saw Kelly frown while straightening. Either he was wondering something or he was puzzled.

"Yeah. Couple months ago. You fractured your skull and you had an epidural hematoma. Your flash was about that?"

Matt swallowed nervously. Just thinking about what he had seen, a new wave of nausea hit him. He barely had time to nod and sign to Kelly that he wanted to throw up. He hurried to grab a can and put him below his chin just in time. As he hadn't eaten yet, an unbearable pain came upon his stomach and chest. He place his hand on it as to show where the pain was, he closed his eyes while he was still throwing up. Everything was burning inside of him, sending pain signals everywhere. Kelly sat on the bed close to Matt, passed his hand on his back and rubbed the palm of his hand between his two scapula. He knew Matt enough to know that it was a way to calm his nausea.

"It'll pass Matt, it'll pass", he affirmed in a calm and soft tone and in a whisper.

Several minutes passed and nausea calmed down, finally. Kelly moved the bowl away, putting it in the bathroom before coming back on the chair.

"Do you think you can put words on what you've seen?"

Eyes still closed, Matt took some time to regain the control of his breathing before answering.

"When I was in the building... There was this child, a little girl. I... Took her into my gear and I got out. But... At the entry of the building, the ceiling collapsed. I protected this baby and... The beam fell on my neck... The... The giys pulled me and freed me and... And when I got out, I passed out. And the I woke up".

He felt coming on his own hand, Kelly's one. He opened his eyes slowly, turning his head slightly to the right to see his brother smiling.

"It's the first time you're talking about this call, to be honest with you. You told me couples weeks later that you didn't remember the accident. That you couldn't remember the whole day".

Matt straightened a little but stopped suddenly. He frowned, gazing at his right arm. He was moving it in every direction without any pain, he could put some weight on it without disturbance despite the splint. He then looked down at his legs and at his pelvis. He had managed to straighten without pain anywhere, although it was a torture beofre just by trying to do it. He let out a laugh. He remembered this PT session in the swimming pool with Sacha and his wife. But he didn't think to have such improvements this soon.

"You're convinced by these PT session in water now?"

He hadn't noticed it, but tears were streaming down his cheeks and falling on the sheets. It wasn't tears of pain. They were tears of joy. He turned his head to the left, watching untiringly the face of the one he was learning to know and was loving unconditionnally. However, something was missing.

"She... Isn't hooked to a vent anymore?

"Emily had consulted Dr. Espinosa, the respiraotry therapist, and they both decided that Gabby was strong enough to be able to breathe on her own and without assistance. They prefer to give her some supplemental oxygen because she's still in a coma. But she's turning the corner very slowly. She's hanging in there".

Matt closed his eyes again, taking this opportunity to let out for tears of joy again.