Chapter Five: Red Hot
Sorry for the wait! This is an extra long chapter, so hopefully I made up for how long this took.
I have amazing news! I don't know if any of you watch Chicago Fire (if not, and you like this story, I recommend it!) but I had an incredible experience. I met Monica Raymund (aka Gabby Dawson) after one of her theater performances! She's so sweet, and was fantastic in Thaddeus and Slocum. Best night of my life!
Anyway, enough about me. Here's Chapter 5!
It's Halloween, and the whole house seems to be in good spirits. It's a slow day at the station, so your company takes the engine out to the St. Michael's Pumpkin Fair in the morning, and you bring back several pumpkins for the annual Firehouse 47 pumpkin carving contest. Sam is the reigning champion, because of his detailed carving of the Engine 18 crest last year, but you're determined to win this time.
"Didn't one of you buy candy?" you ask the guys. You've checked every cabinet, but there's no candy; either it's been eaten, or no one had bought any to begin with.
"That was supposed to be Candidate's job," Puck calls from the couch, and Ryder holds up his hands.
"I bought a bag of Snickers two weeks ago, and someone ate all of them." Ryder throws a pointed glare in the direction of Puck, who finally tears his eyes away from the Giants game long enough to flip Ryder off.
"You left them on the table, and you expected me to not eat them?" Puck scoffs, propping his feet up on the coffee table in front of him. "You've got a hell of a lot to learn, Candidate."
You're about to give Puck a piece of your mind when the door opens, and Tina and Kurt walk in, having returned from a call. Both carry a paper bag in each hand, and you're curious to know what they have.
"No little kids are going hungry at this house," Tina says, and they proceed to empty their bags on the counter. Bag after bag of candy pours out, covering the surface of the counter, and you, Mike, and Ryder all cheer.
"Noah, if you even think about eating this before the trick-or-treaters come, I'll shave off that atrocity on your head while you're sleeping," Kurt warns. Puck's eyes widen, and he nods frantically as he runs a shaky hand through his mohawk.
Engine Eighteen, Squad Six, Ambulance Thirty-Two, person in distress on Third Avenue.
"No time to eat it anyway," Puck grumbles, and you all jog out to the garage.
When the engine pulls up to the scene, you don't immediately see anything wrong. The address is a brick apartment building, five stories tall, and in fairly decent shape. You hop out of the truck behind Mike, and quickly survey the front of the building.
"Chief, where should we start?" Blaine asks, glancing up at the brownstone. "They didn't even give us an apartment number."
Chief Schuester strokes the stubble on his chin, eyes narrowed in thought. "Separate and knock on each door, someone–"
"Help, somebody help me!"
Without hesitation, you all sprint towards the source of the scream. Turning the corner into the alley, you practically skid to a stop once you see him.
It's the condition of his face that first strikes your attention. The deep purple bruises that cover his cheeks and neck are coated in blood, leaving no skin unscathed. A deep open gash runs down in a line, from the corner of his right eye to his bottom lip.
The kid is also three stories up in the air, strapped by a rope to the outer edge of the fire escape.
"I can't get the truck in here, it's way too narrow," Puck says, glancing back at your engine through the alley. Schue gazes up at the hurt teenager, formulating a plan in his head.
"Anderson, Pierce, Chang, take the rope and pulley up to the fire escape. Evans, Puckerman, get ready to belay."
You, Mike and Blaine run back through the alley to the engine, where Mike pulls the rope out from the door of the truck. Blaine leads the way into the building, calling instructions to you and Mike over his shoulder.
"When we get up to the third floor, check the apartments on the left wing… one of them's got to have an entrance to the fire escape."
The three of you jog up the stairs, your boots pounding loudly on the steps as you ascend. When you reach the third floor, slightly out of breath, Blaine heads for the first apartment, instructing you and Mike to take the next two. You approach the door immediately to the right, and knock loudly; the wood is solid under your touch. You inhale slowly; you just want to get to the kid as quickly as possible.
"Fire Department, open up!" you yell, and wait a few moments. When you don't get a response, or hear any movement on the other side of the door, you get ready to force the door open.
"Need any help getting the door open, Pierce?" Mike calls to you, from his spot at the third apartment. You turn around and brace your hands on the trim, and with a grunt, kick backwards against the door. It swings open hard, slamming back against the wall inside the apartment with a loud crash.
"I'm good," you tell Mike, with a cheeky smile and a wink. He chuckles; Mike's been your friend long enough to know that you are very capable of kicking open a door, and that you're proud, proud to be able to keep up with your male colleagues as well as you do.
You turn back to the apartment, and, with a deep breath, make your way inside. You don't see any people, as you jog through the kitchen, and then the living room. When you get to the back room, you freeze; there's an open window, with clear access to the fire escape.
"Guys, I've got access!" you shout, and only a few moments pass before Blaine and Mike jog into the apartment, standing next to you.
"Lead the way, Pierce," Blaine instructs.
Without hesitation, you climb through the window, swinging your legs around to land on the fire escape. The black metal grate echoes as your boots land on it, and you apply pressure with your foot to test the floor's strength. Mike and Blaine follow quickly, joining you on the platform of the fire escape.
"Pierce, get the kid into the harness. Chang, help me get the rope secured to the bars," Blaine calls out, and you don't hesitate to take the climbing harness over to the injured boy.
The kid can't be older than sixteen, you notice, and the gashes on his face are significantly worse up close. To get easier access, you take a few steps down the fire escape, positioning yourself below the boy.
"My name's Brittany, I'm here to help you. What's your name?" you ask him, waiting for some form of consent before you put the harness on him.
The buy groans, shifting within the rope constraints. "Nick."
"Nice to meet you, Nick. I'm going to put this harness on you, Nick, if that's okay with you. We're going to get you down from here."
Nick lets out a grunt in response, which you take as consent. Leaning over the side of the stairs, you pull the harness over his feet, and up his legs until it fits around his torso. Straining slightly upwards, you buckle the straps of the harness until it fits securely around his waist.
After giving the straps a few tugs, to make sure the harness is tight enough, you call up to Blaine.
"Send down the clip, he's all strapped in," you yell, and Blaine hands the end of the rope down to you through the bars. Grasping the carabiner, you pull it up to the boy's harness, securing it through the loop.
"You're doing great, Nick. We've just got to get these ropes off of you, and you'll be down there in a blink," you tell the boy.
Mike throws the other end of the rope down to Puck, who clips the end into his belay harness. Sam stands behind him to anchor, and he gives a thumbs up when they're ready.
"Alright Pierce, Chang and I are undoing the ropes now. Puck will let him down slowly, but make sure he doesn't hit his head." Blaine instructs.
"Copy that," you call up. You wince slightly, at the scream Nick releases as he's being untied. It's hard to imagine the amount of pain the boy is in, and you want nothing more than for him to be safe.
"He's coming down!" Blaine yells, and you see Puck begin to belay down below. Nick slowly lowers, and you put a hand behind his head to protect it from further damage.
It only takes another minute until Nick reaches the ground, and you see Ryder and Finn unclip him and place him on the waiting stretcher.
You let out a sigh of relief, and climb back up the stairs of the fire escape. Mike gives you a grin, which you return with a fist bump, and Blaine claps you on the back.
"You did well, Pierce," Blaine tells you, and you smile.
"So did you, Lieutenant." You give Blaine a squeeze on his shoulder, and lead the way back through the apartment.
When the three of you return outside, you see Tina closing up the ambulance. You're nervous about the boy's condition, but even more so, if he has any family to take care of him.
"Tina!" you call, and she waits as you jog over to her. "How's he doing?"
"He's stable, just pretty banged up." Tina smiles softly, and you feel yourself relax.
"Any family show up?" You're in a rough neighborhood, but you hope he has someone who cares about his wellbeing.
"He said his mom's at work, Kurt's on the phone with her now."
Sighing in relief, you reach up and take your helmet off. A gust of cool wind blows through your hair, and you tuck the helmet under your arm. "Who would do that to a kid?"
"A Halloween prank gone too far, maybe." Tina shakes her head. "It's sickening."
You nod in agreement. You look behind you, at the police interviewing neighbors and bystanders, and hope, for Nick's sake, they find out who did this.
"I hope you all have incredible carvings, because it's time to choose the winner of the seventy-sixth annual Firehouse Forty-Seven Pumpkin Carving Contest!" Chief Schuester says, addressing the contestants that fill the common room. "The judge of honor, as always, is my lovely wife Emma."
Emma gives a small wave to the room, and you smile; she's always been incredibly sweet to you, and was a source of comfort back before Tina joined the house, when you were the only woman.
Chief Schuester puts his arm around his wife, and clears his throat. "I'd like to thank all of the guests who are joining us today. Know that all of you are always welcome at the house, and that we love having you."
You look over at Santana, who stands next to you with her fingers intertwined with yours. She's working later, because Halloween at Abrams is one of the busiest nights of the year, but you'll visit her after your shift and watch her work. Santana had told you that you didn't have to spend your Halloween watching her work, and you rolled your eyes and kissed her. You don't want to be anywhere else, and she knows it.
Santana notices your gaze, and looks back at you. You smile, because she's just all kinds of perfect, and her eyes light up. Squeezing your hand, she leans in close to your ear.
"Does Finn's even count as a Jack-o-lantern? It looks like someone gave a blindfolded three year-old a knife and said 'Go crazy'," she whispers. You try as hard as you can to give her a stern look, but you can't help but laugh; Finn's face– or what you think is a face –is pretty terrible.
"Be nice," you tell Santana, but you're smiling, and so is she. You look down at your own carving, the silhouette of a firefighter surrounded in flames, and you've got to admit, it's pretty great.
"Yours is easily the best one, Britt," Santana says, and your gaze drifts to Emma, who observes the pumpkins as she makes her way around the room.
Shrugging, you turn back to Santana. "I don't know, some of these are really good."
"Oh please, you've got it in the bag. We already agreed that Finn's looks like roadkill, and it's obvious Puck's 'rocket ship' is a dick."
You roll your eyes, laughing when you see Puck attempting to justify his carving to Chief Schue, and you smile when Emma approaches you.
"Brittany, it's so good to see you!" Emma exclaims, and you embrace her for a quick hug. In a weird way, Emma's been like a mother to you since you joined 47; even though she's only ten years older than you, she's been able to understand you in ways that Mary Evans can't, despite being your stepmother.
"I don't believe we've met before," Emma says to Santana, and you smile as you grasp her hand again.
"San, this is Emma Schuester. Emma, this is Santana Lopez, my girlfriend." You smile, as girlfriend rolls off your tongue. You're still not used to saying it, probably because you still can't believe this incredible woman is actually yours, and Santana smiles as she shakes Emma's hand.
"It's great to meet you, Mrs. Schuester. Britt's told me a lot about you."
Smiling, Emma looks down at your pumpkin. "Brittany, this is amazing. The detail is very impressive," Emma says, and you grin.
Chief Schuester comes up behind Emma, and puts his hands on her shoulders. "Em, have you chosen a winner?"
"I think I have," Emma says, and leans up to whisper in Chief Schue's ear.
After a moment, Chief Schue looks up, and clears his throat. The chatter in the common room dies down, and Chief glances around the room.
"The results are in, and it's time to announce the winner," Chief Schuester says. Holding your breath, you squeeze Santana's hand, and she squeezes back.
"The winner is… Brittany Pierce!"
"Oh my god," you let out, and Santana throws her arms around you.
"Britt, I'm so proud of you," she mumbles into your hair, and you laugh as she glares around the room at some of the disappointed faces. "That's right, you all should feel bad, my girlfriend just owned all of you."
Chief Schue comes up to you with the prize, a golden Firehouse 47 helmet (really, a gold-painted plastic helmet), and you take it with a smile.
"Congratulations, Pierce. You earned it," Chief Schue tells you. Grinning, you lift the helmet up and place it on Santana's head.
A chorus of "Aww"s sound through the room, and Santana blushes next to you, pressing a soft kiss to your cheek. When she pulls away you look at her, and she smiles at you, her eyes glowing bright. That, you figure, is the best prize you could get.
"Are we almost there?" you ask, irritated, as you drum your fingers on the wall of the truck. You'd told Santana you'd be at Abrams by 8:00, but you just had to get a call five minutes before your shift ended, and now it's 9:15 and you're still not there yet.
"Calm your tits, Pierce, we're two blocks away," Puck calls back from the driver's seat.
"It's not like you have a girlfriend who's waiting for you," you mutter, and Puck chuckles.
"Shade from Pierce, never thought I'd see the day."
"Shut it, Puck," Mike says, and turns to you. "Brittany, you know as well as I do that Santana understands our job, and the craziness that comes with it. Sometimes timing is out of our control, and she respects that."
"Yeah, I know." Glancing up through the windshield, you finally see the Abrams sign come into view.
"Thanks, Noah," you say as he pulls the truck to a stop in front of the bar.
"Go get your lady, Pierce. And hey, if you guys are up for a threesome, just–"
You slam the door behind you, rolling your eyes. Puck may be kind of a jerk, but you know he's always got your back.
Wasting no time, you jog as fast as you can in your turnout pants to the door. You'd shed your jacket and helmet on the truck, but you had no time to take off the pants. You might've kept them on even if you did have time, because you know Santana loves them.
You laugh, as you walk through the door. Abrams is full of people, most of whom are dressed in Halloween costumes. Santana had mentioned they would be, but the extent, you hadn't expected. A guy walks by only wearing an American flag Speedo and an Uncle Sam hat, and a girl a few feet from you wears a tiger onesie. When you'd asked Santana if she'd be in a costume, she gave you a wink. That girl, you swear, will be the death of you.
When you get to the bar, you spot Santana immediately. She's serving a customer, and the red horns on her head let you know right away what her costume is.
Her eyes light up when she sees you approach, and she whispers a few words to Dave, presumably telling him she's going on break. You feel a pang of guilt, that she hasn't gone on break yet because she was waiting for you, but it quickly fades as she steps out from behind the bar.
You finally understand why she winked at you, when you asked about her costume. Along with the horns, she wears a red, skin-tight mini dress, with matching shiny high-heeled boots. Your throat goes dry, as she comes up to you, and she gives you a radiant smile.
"Hey, babe," Santana says, and presses a quick kiss to your lips.
"Babe? That's a new one." You haven't really used any kind of pet names before, you never really considered it, but the fluttering you feel in your stomach tells you it's something you could get used to.
Santana blushes. 'Sorry, I don't know. I get a little loopy whenever I see you in these pants." She pulls you in closer by your suspenders, and you can't help but kiss her again.
"No, I like it. A lot," you tell her, smiling, when you pull away. "And on the subject of liking things, I may just want to go to hell now, if this is the devil I get."
Santana laughs, her real, beautiful laugh you can never get enough of. "Well, my middle name is Diabla, so I had to play the part."
"And you know how much I love it when you wear red."
"That too."
You sigh, remembering your guilt for coming late. "I'm sorry I was an hour late, San. We got a call right at the end of the shift, and–"
Santana cuts you off with a slow, sweet kiss, and you feel like you're melting. "Tell me about the call."
You think back, recalling the previous few hours. "There was a car accident, some drunk idiot hit a car with a family going home from a Halloween party. They were all okay, thankfully. This little girl in a princess dress got trapped with an arm injury, but I got her out in time."
Santana wraps you in a hug, holding you tight. You let your head rest on her shoulder, and you breathe her in, letting yourself relax.
"Britt, I wouldn't care if you were ten hours late, because I know you're out there, being a lady knight in shining armor who's rescuing little princesses. Nothing makes me happier, you know, than telling people my girlfriend saves lives every day."
"Thank you," you mumble, hugging her tighter. "For the record, I like to tell my friends that my girlfriend's a sexy she-devil."
Laughing, Santana lightly punches you on the arm. "C'mon, firefighter, let me pour you a drink."
You sit down at a bar stool, as Santana goes back behind the bar to make you a passionfruit mojito. You're watching her, a huge smile on your face, when Dave comes up to you.
"Hey Brittany, I wanted to tell you something," Dave says, propping his hands up on the bar counter.
"Sure, Dave, what's up?" you ask, curious.
"Well, for a while I've been trying to figure out what I want to do with my life. Something that has meaning, you know? So with a lot of consideration, I decided I'm going to join the Fire Academy."
You're shocked. "Dave, that's amazing! You'll make an incredible firefighter."
Dave grins. "Thanks Britt, that means a lot. And I was wondering, maybe, if you could put in a good word for me at 47."
Putting a hand on his shoulder, you smile. "Of course I will. Ryder's probably going to be made into a full-fledged firefighter soon, so we should have a Candidate opening by the time you graduate."
Santana comes up next to Dave, and places your drink on the counter. "Dave, why didn't you tell me? That's awesome news."
"I wanted to run it by Brittany first, make sure it was a good idea."
"It's a great idea, Dave. There's no better satisfaction than saving lives."
Dave smiles. "I can't wait. I've got to get back to work, but I'll see you later, Brittany. Santana, take the rest of the night off, be with your girl."
Santana's eyes widen. "Seriously?"
"Dead serious. Go have fun, you two."
Santana hugs him quickly, and comes back around the side of the bar. "What do you want to do, Britt?"
"Take me to your apartment." You hadn't meant to be so forward, but when Santana's eyes darken, you know you made the right choice.
"As in–"
"Yeah."
She studies you, calculating. "You're sure?"
"Mhmm." You look at her, your eyes probably revealing your desire. "Do you want to?"
"God, yes."
"Then let's go."
She's kissing you as soon as you close the door of her apartment behind you. You take off her devil horns, throwing them somewhere near the couch, so you can run your fingers through her hair.
"Fuck, Britt," she breathes as you press her against the apartment door. You want to touch her everywhere at once, but your hands settle at her hips. She tugs on your suspenders, pulling you flush against her, as you kiss, and kiss, and kiss.
"B… Bedroom," you moan, as she moves her lips to your neck, kissing your pulse point. Slipping out of your boots, you guide her legs to wrap around your waist, and you pick her up, thankful for your amount of required strength training.
Santana laughs against your skin, when you bump into the doorframe of her bedroom, but she kisses you passionately as you lay her down on the bed.
You don't take your time removing each other's clothes; you slide her boots off her feet, as she unloops your suspenders and takes off your bunker pants.
"Too many clothes," she whines, when she discovers you have leggings on underneath your turnout pants.
You chuckle. "I have to, I can't walk around the firehouse without pants."
"You should," Santana says, as she pulls your leggings off. You quickly pull your shirt over your head, tossing it behind you. She runs her fingers along your abs, and you breathe out a moan. "Maybe you should go without a shirt, too."
You smirk. "Yeah, I bet those firefighters would love a free show like that."
Santana rolls her eyes. "Actually, never mind. I don't want to share you."
"So I shouldn't take up Puck's offer of a threesome?"
"Hell. No."
You laugh and unzip her dress, which she throws on the floor, leaving both of you in just your bras and underwear. You'd normally feel uncomfortable in so little clothing, but with Santana it feels right; you want her to touch you, everywhere, and she brings her hands to the clasp of your bra.
Santana looks at you, before she continues, and you nod, urging her to unclasp it. She wastes no time, flipping you over after she takes off your bra, and attaches her lips to your nipple, rubbing her thumb over the other.
"Santana," you moan, your hips canting up to hers. You're in ecstasy already, and you want, need, more. You run your hands up her back, unclasping her bra, and you fling it away as she switches her mouth to your other nipple, circling it with her tongue.
"San, I need…" You trail off, but she knows. She hooks her thumbs into your panties, pulling them down, and you kick them off your feet.
Santana moves up, for a moment, looking at you. You almost feel self-conscious, but then she leans back down, kissing you deeply.
"You're so beautiful, Britt," she mumbles against your lips. Your heart flutters, because this girl, and you flip her over, pulling her panties off.
"So are you," you say after you kiss her. "The most beautiful girl in the world."
You gasp, as Santana runs two fingers through your wetness, rubbing them back and forth. Circling her nipple around your lips, you slide a finger into her, slowly pushing in and out. Santana throws her head back and lets out a shuddered breath. "Fuck, Britt, keep going."
You grind your hips together, as you both thrust your fingers into each other. Your connection to Santana, it's stronger than it's ever been, as you bring each other to the edge.
"San, I'm close," you moan, and you feel her lips on your neck.
"Me too," she breathes, and you both thrust harder, faster.
You reach your climax, and wave after wave of pleasure rolls over you, as you cry Santana's name. Feeling her clench around your fingers, you slow down, and her body shudders beneath you.
Collapsing in her arms, you pant, absolutely exhausted. Santana takes deep breaths, and curls into you.
"Fuck Britt, I… fuck."
"I know." You turn to her, gazing into her glowing eyes, and kiss her. "You're incredible."
"No, you're incredible," Santana says, after you pull away. "I've never even come close to feeling that good in my whole life."
"Me too." Wrapping your arms around her, you pull her against you, enjoying the feeling of her warm skin pressed against yours. "I hope you like cuddling after sex, because I'm not letting go of you."
Santana laughs, and gives you a dimple smile. "Britt, cuddling with you is my favorite thing in the whole world."
With one last kiss to her lips, you close your eyes, and holding Santana close, you fall into a deep sleep.
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See you soon!