The Outpouring; From a Distance

While Roy was waiting for his wife to bring him some clean clothes and then hopefully take him home, he asked for and was giving permission to walk up to ICU and check on the rest of his crew mates.

When he stepped into ICU, wearing a hospital issued robe and slippers, a nurse quickly approached him, "Excuse me sir this is ICU," and then she took a step back. "You must be one of the firemen."

Roy blushed deeply and hung his head. "Ye-ah," he responded then gave the nurse's station a quick scan. There were air fresheners hung everywhere with the thickest concentration of them in front of Chet and Marco's cubicles. 'They must have bought out half a dozen gas stations,' Roy thought as he shook his lowered head.

"I've come to check on my shift mates so I can report back to the rest of them," Roy explained and was gestured into the room.

Chet looked to be asleep so he stepped over to Marco's room first. He was talking with his mom who was sitting at his bedside holding his hand. Marco's face was covered with small open sores and you could see the circle of the draft hose on his face. His appearance was made worse by his swollen face and Roy figured that it was due to steroids used to help with his breathing. The parts of his eyes that had once been white were now red but when he turned to look at Roy standing in the doorway they had a smile in them.

"Hay," Marco whispered his voice still raspy from the vent tube, "Look at you."

"Yeah," Roy smiled at his friend. It was clear he had seen better days but Roy was comforted knowing he would see them again. "They've given me my walking papers I'm just waiting for JoAnne to come get me."

"The rest of the guys?" Marco was using all of his energy.

"They're doing good, resting comfortably; they still have IV's and all kinds of tubing in 'em but they're getting better every minute." "The two of you got the worst of it," Roy added nodding at Chet through the glass. "Both of you had your faces in the hose and got sprayed full force."

"Real up close and personal." Marco rasped with a smile. "The Doc said we should be joining the rest of you sometime this afternoon."

"That's great," Roy smiled wider, "Cap will be glad to have you all where he can keep an eye on you."

After visiting with Chet for a minute and repeating nearly everything that had been said to Marco, Roy made his way back to the observation room where Cap, Mike and Johnny were enjoying a plethora of deliveries.

In addition to several vases of flowers with their overpowering scent, the room was scattered with stuffed animals, all sizes and several animal shaped hats; all skunks. Each man in the room even Roy received several bottles of sweet smelling bubble bath, shampoo and after shave lotion. The load of cards on Cap's lap was about five times what the rest received because he was presented with all the cards and letters simply addressed to 'the firemen'. As soon as the guys had finished with their personal letters he planned to pass them around to help ease the boredom. There were also several deliveries set aside for Chet and Marco once they were moved and Johnny received a large envelope filled with drawings and notes from the children in pediatrics whom he often read to and entertained on his days off.

There wasn't a patient in the room that didn't know the reason they were being all kept together was to keep from spreading the scent of skunk through out the hospital but they were enjoying the companionship and camaraderie of being captive with their own kind.

"Hay guys look at this," John turned his drawing around and held it up for all to see. It was a drawing of a fireman, at least everyone assumed it was a fireman he was wearing a black hat, a spotted dog and a skunk all the same size standing with their arms around each others shoulders and looking as if they were doing some kind of a soft shoe dance. "He writes that he thinks it was real nice of us to give the skunk a ride on the fire engine and asks if he can get one too." Everyone chuckled then Johnny added, "He says he's willing to wait till we all feel better."

JoAnne and Emily arrived together and since JoAnne had her arms full of Roy's clothes, Emily held the door open for an orderly pulling a wheeled cart stacked with more boxes, bags and flowers. The highlight of this delivery was two cases of canned tomato juice.

All the laughing set Mike and Johnny coughing so severely that the nurse had to put them both back on oxygen for a few minutes but it didn't stop them from snickering under their masks. Once Johnny and Mike were relieved of their masks again Roy stepped into the bathroom and into his own clothes.

A wheelchair was brought in not to carry Roy out for he was given permission to walk but the wheelchair was needed to haul out all of his gifts. He chose to leave the tomato juice for his crewmates; the doctors had already explained that it was a myth about tomato juice taking the smell away but a couple of the guys were willing to try it anyway. Roy loaded the different toiletries in a plastic bag, he asked JoAnne to pick out a stuffed animal each for Chris and Jenny, JoAnne then placed the skunk hat on Roy's head and Roy picked out a vase of JoAnne's favorite flowers. The nurse was instructed to send the rest of his stuffed animals to the children's ward and the flowers to someone who didn't have any.

With a sack in one hand, a vase of flowers in the other and his wife at his side Roy said his good-bye's and walked toward the nearest exit.

As they walked to the car Roy took in and let out several deep breath of sweet smelling smog filled air.

Roy was allowed to drive and he didn't miss that his wife rolled the car window down. The drive home was made in uneasy silence until Roy pulled into the drive way. With the car stopped Roy turned and stopped his wife from getting out of the car.

"I was thinking that it would be best if I pitched a tent in the back yard for a few days," Roy offered.

JoAnne turned into a sobbing mush and Roy wanted so much to take her into his arms and comfort her but thought better of it. "I'm so sorry Roy, you don't deserve to be treated like this," JoAnne continued to sob.

"Hay it's what I get for wrestling with a skunk," Roy tried to lighten the mood.

"Eight of 'em from what I've heard," JoAnne giggled slightly through her tears. "You do smell a lot better than you did yesterday," Jo added.

"That's encouraging; maybe if I use up all the bubble bath, in that bag there, you could stand to give me a hug."

Still in tears JoAnne slid over in the seat and put her arms around her husband's shoulders. Then she ducked her head into his shoulder and let the tears flow. Roy tenderly placed his arms around his wife's shoulders being careful not to keep her from pulling away if she wanted to. As she sobbed, she babbled and Roy listened.

"They said that you had all breathed some of the skunk spray into your lungs and that you were drowning in your own fluids. They said that we had to wait till they had the whole situation under control before they could tell us any more." "We were all there waiting for the worst, Emily, Mrs. Lopez, and Cindy Kelly. We tried to keep each other's hopes up but then a nurse came in and told Mrs. Lopez that Marco was on a respirator and asked if she wanted them to call the priest in." JoAnne let out a new round of tears and Roy rubbed her back as his own eyes grew moist.

"No one told the rest of us anything until Dixie came and led us to your room, we didn't know what we were going to see on the other side of that door when she opened it up. And then you explained that sometimes problems showed up later." JoAnne finally pulled away just enough to look her husband eye to eye. "When will we know that you're safe? How long before we know for sure that you're going to be alright."

Roy brushed a few stray hairs out of his wife's face and kissed her forehead. "Most if not all complications manifest themselves in the first 12 to 24 hours." Roy did his best to calm his wife down, "My blood work was clear this morning, I'll probably be called back to work with in 48 to 72 hours." Grabbing his wife's shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze and a good rub Roy added. "I'm just fine, I just smell bad. I was in the locker room trying to get the first shower when the skunks went off so I missed the worst of it."

"So you're really alright? I don't have to watch you for any problems?" JoAnne needed to hear.

"I'm just fine." Roy confirmed and JoAnne let out a sigh of relief.

As they sat in the car Roy explained how Chet and Marco had their faces up against the open draft hose trying to see what sounded to them like a crow. Mike was right behind Marco and got a good shot in the face too. Johnny recognized the sound and knew it wasn't a crow and ducked pulling Mike and Marco away and then out of the bay, Cap opened the doors then went back for oxygen and a radio while I came from the locker room and pulled Chet off the floor and out of the bay. The smell was so strong it just burned my nose and lungs and I didn't have a clue what we were dealing with until I heard Johnny call it in to Rampart." "I really felt sorry for all the guys that were working on us. Not to mention the ones who got to clean up the station."

Once all was calm between husband and wife the two walked into the house arm in arm, Roy carrying the bag and stuffed toys, JoAnne carrying her flowers. All seemed back to normal until they stepped inside and the family dog came running to get his ears scratched only to take one sniff once he got close and run from the room.

"So tell me," Roy turned to his wife, "Which one of these bubble baths should I use first?"

00000

Back at Rampart, Johnny continued to share his notes and drawings from the children while Cap dealt out all the cards and letters addressed simply to the firemen, when he had six equal stacks his wife who hung around for a while carried each pile to one of the men placing the pile for Chet and Marco on the bed side table between two flower vases.

Letters were read out loud one or two at a time between short naps. Just before lunch two of the beds were taken out of the room and Hank was beginning to wonder if they decided not to move Chet and Marco in with them after all.

Just after lunch the two beds were returned with their missing friends in them. Both men were still using oxygen and both looked like they had seen better days. Momma Lopez and Mrs. Kelly were right behind them and at their sons' sides before the oxygen was hooked up. It was clear at first glance that neither of them had slept the night before.

None of the men felt their best but it was a quiet Chet Kelly that was the most unnerving especially when his favorite pigeon was in the next bed.

Mamma Lopez and Chet's mother helped their sons open up their stacks of letters and did all the reading out loud, Cap then requested some paper and pens and they worked together to write replies to the letters, they really didn't hope to answer them all but made an effort to see to it that everyone sent from the children in PEDs received a response. Each response contained a coupon good for a personal tour of the fire station.

Cap was also able to write up a Thank you note for the general public for someone from Public Relations to read at a press conference the next morning.

Before dinner was served the curtains were drawn and Captain Stanley, Johnny and Mike were all relieved of their tubing below the waist. When dinner was served Cap and Johnny were strong enough to spoon feed Chet and Marco letting their mothers know it was safe for them to go home and get some sleep.

The worst of things were over they all felt certain.