Disclaimer: All stories are individuals of themselves and are unrelated to each other.
He had been dating Madge for quite a few months now. She was reluctant to date him at first, shying away from Gale's advances and politely turning down his requests for drinks out. He was persistent. She never said she didn't like him or that she wanted him to leave her alone, she just said she wasn't ready for a relationship. He would wait a few weeks and try again, visit her at work, ask her about her life. And finally, after countless attempts, she agreed for a date.
"It's not that I never wanted to before," she told him. Their first time out had been simple – a walk through the park. They were sitting on a bench and eating the snow cones they had just bought up the street. "I've always liked you, Gale."
"Then why the constant rejection?" he wondered.
She lifted her shoulders and looked toward the ground. "You're a firefighter." He didn't understand how that could be a deal breaker. If anything, the outfit made him look ten times better than he already did, and the pay was incredible. "I lost my aunt to a fire when I was little," she told him as their date progressed. "They're so unpredictable, fires. You never know what's going to happen, where the flames will go."
"I've been doing this job for years," he told her, spooning up a bite of her strawberry ice to take it for himself. "I can handle it."
While he didn't understand her hesitation, he did understand her hesitation. Fires were messy and scary. Floors could collapse, rafters could fall, it wasn't just the fire or the smoke that was dangerous. But Gale knew what he was doing every time he got a call and had yet to end up with any substantial injuries.
After their first date she seemed not to worry about it as much, at least not openly. Her fears were never vocalized, though he knew at times she was holding herself back. It's like dating someone who's going to fight a war, or dating a cop. Their life is on the line every day and one little mistake might not allow them to come home.
A month or so later was Gale's first close call. He had to double back into the fire and grab a girl who was unconscious when the floorboards caved with him on the wrong side. He got himself and the girl to safety but it was the first time he had realized he might not make it out. It was that night that Madge pulled him aside.
"Gale, I don't know if I can do this," she had whispered. He grabbed her hands but she wouldn't meet his eyes. "I spend every day worrying about you, about your safety." He shook his head but she still wasn't looking. "I want to be with you, I do, but I'm driving myself insane because I'm so scared that—"
"Madge," he cut her off. "Please. Don't do this." Finally she lifted her eyes and met his. He understood at once where her fears came from. "This isn't a career," he told her, gripping her hands. "I don't plan to do this forever."
"Then maybe when you're done we can try again."
"No, Madge…" Gale lifted her hands to his mouth and kissed her fingertips. "Don't do this," he said again. "I'm already taking less shifts, they update the gear practically monthly. It gets safer and safer every day."
"You could've died," Madge croaked. He tugged her toward him until she was on his lap, nestled into his chest. "I don't want you to get hurt," she whimpered. His arms were wrapped around her, her hands rubbing her back. "It terrifies me. Gale, it terrifies me."
"I know," he whispered. "I know, baby." She sniffled and he pulled her closer. "I've been looking at jobs elsewhere," he said. "You know I have. My contract at the firehouse isn't up for another year at least, though." Madge sniffled again, lifting her head to look at him. "This is what I like to do, Madge," he shakes his head, furrowing his eyebrows. "I want to be out there. Helping people. No matter what I do I've got to be out there."
"I help people from a desk," she told him.
Gale chuckled. "I know you do," he bent down to kiss her, "but not all people are built for desk jobs."
So she quit trying to argue it, though it still scared her every day. He was right, it was his life and he wasn't built for paperwork. He needed to be in the action, working with his hands and seeing the difference he was making. That didn't mean she liked it. Her stress levels were through the roof and at times it felt they couldn't get through a dinner without an argument. They worked through it, thanks to Gale's persistence. He was patient with her, walking her through the steps, teaching her fire safety in case there was ever an emergency, explaining in vivid detail what he would do in every situation. He reminded her that most calls weren't big or entirely dangerous, it was rare that he really feared his life.
Tonight she was staying at his place. She had stayed before and nothing had ever happened but tonight he got called in. It was almost 3 in the morning when his buzzer went off. She was startled awake and Gale quieted the noise before turning to her.
"I gotta go," he said. Madge frowned and reached for him, pulling him into bed. One minute. He gave himself one minute. Gale pressed her into the mattress and kissed her deeply, his hands pushing up her nightshirt to feel her skin. Madge knotted her fingers in his hair and he groaned into her mouth. "Fuck," he pulled away and their lips smacked. "I want to stay."
"Just be safe," she pleaded. Her worry lines were deep and dark, her eyes nearly on the verge of tears. She cupped his cheeks. "Promise me."
"Promise," Gale nodded. He dipped down.
"I love you," she whispered against his lips. He pulled back, their eyes meeting again.
His mouth curved, "I love you," Gale echoed softly. "I'll be back before the sun is up." As he stood to pull on his clothes he glanced back at her. "Most late calls aren't even emergencies," he said. "Faulty wiring or the smell of smoke, nothing big."
"Let's hope, she whispered.
She rolled away from him but he knew she wasn't asleep. Madge would stay awake until he returned, there was no doubt in his mind. Gale quickly drove to the firehouse and put on his gear before climbing aboard the last truck to leave with his crew.
"There's already a team there," one of his friends said. "It's a big one."
Gale's heart sunk into his chest. Not because he was scared, but because he had told Madge it probably wasn't anything drastic. This would take longer than finding the source of smoke and fixing a few wires, he might not make it back before the sun after all.
They approached the fire and Gale was immediately overwhelmed. There wasn't just one team here, there were at least three from other counties. The fire spread across a row of townhouses, at least seven of them were up in flames. Because their walls were connected it was easy for the fire to spread, and it looked as though the fire started from the bottom and traveled upwards so people were most definitely trapped.
Gale climbed from the truck and rushed forward, getting instructions from the chief who was directing the whole thing. He pulled on his breathing apparatus and made for the room that had stuck a shirt out the window to signify that they were stuck.
The heat was incredible but it gave him life. Every time Gale had to go into a fire he liked the feel of the flames, it reminded him that he was still living. He sweat an enormous amount and never smelled good afterwards but it was refreshing in a different sort of way. Climbing the stairs was risky but he didn't have a choice, there were people stuck up there. When he got to the room he pushed his way inside, finding a family of three huddled close to the window.
"Take my son," the mother cried, moving in Gale's direction. He pulled out a smaller facemask for the boy and placed it around his face. "Get him safe!" the woman yelled.
Gale bent down to the boy, he couldn't be any older than seven. "I'm going to get you out of here," Gale said. "Okay?" The boy nodded fiercely. "It's going to be really hot, but you've got to trust me. Can you do that?"
"Yes," the boy croaked.
Gale extended his hands and pulled the boy in his arms. He told the mother and father that he would be back as soon as he could be and started back into the fire. The smoke was thick but Gale was fast and easily made it outside with the boy. There were medical teams waiting who took the boy from Gale the second they got out. He was getting dehydrated but had no choice but to carry on.
The mother was neck, frail and weak from inhaling so much smoke, but she made it out easily as well. It was the father where the trouble stemmed. Each trip into the house was more difficult than the last because the flames kept spreading, they wouldn't stay contained. One of Gale's team members said that he'd go in but Gale shook his head, saying he needed to do his job.
The man was heavy, and he and Gale's weight on the stairs as they walked together was too much. Before Gale even knew what was happening the steps collapsed and they fell through into the fire.
He awoke in a hospital to the sound of a heart monitor. It took him a minute to realize it was his heart monitor. Gale erupted into chest rattling coughing the second he awoke, which startled the girl at his side awake. When he saw Madge next to his bed he opened his mouth to explain, to apologize, to ask what the hell happened, but his throat was dry.
"Here," Madge handed him a cup of water from a nearby table, helping Gale sit up and drink it. She smiled weakly at him as he chugged it all. She sighed loudly, sinking backwards in her seat while still holding his hand. "Back before the sun?" she asked.
"I may have miscalculated," he forced out, coughing again.
She quickly recounted for him what happened, one of Gale's team members having told her when they called. He was rescuing a man from the top floor of a home that had yet to receive attention which weakened the interior, causing the floor to collapse. The place they landed was between the stairs where pipes were. As they fell Gale took the most of it. His breathing apparatus had broken, forcing Gale to inhale smoke, and he was unconscious so he couldn't even defend himself. He blacked out instantly but the man who was with him found his walkie and called for help, trying to rouse Gale.
He hadn't woken but the medical team said he would be okay. Gale was left with a few broken ribs, a concussion, and a whole bunch of bruises and scrapes.
When she was done the story Gale sunk backwards onto the bed. He couldn't look at her. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "You were right. I was incredibly wrong. Everything is unpredictable in there."
"You saved a man's life," Madge said quietly. "A whole family." His shoulders lifted and he turned his head. "I'm proud of you, Gale."
He reached over with his freehand and grabbed her hand that was resting atop his, squeezing lightly. "If you want to end it," he murmured. "I…" He understands. He hates it, but he understands. She squeezed back.
"When they called me," she picks up in the silence, "I knew something was wrong. I knew something was wrong in the first place because it was going on 5 and the sun was rising and I was all alone in your bed." Gale grimaced but she lifted her other hand to join his. "It was the scariest phone call I had ever received," Madge told him. "I thought you were dead." She shook her head and blinked back tears. "I couldn't feel anything, I… my fingers were cold and I couldn't swallow because I was trying so hard to not sob and—"
"Madge," Gale cut her off with a sigh. "I get it."
"But you're okay," she whispered. "You're okay. And I keep thinking about it, Gale. I keep thinking about my aunt, if there had been someone like you to save her…" she trailed off. "Maybe one day I'll need saving. And the fact that there are people like you, risking their lives, being heroes…" she sighed. "I hate your stupid job. You know I hate it."
"I know you hate it," he echoed with a frown.
"But to ask you to quit, I can't do that." Their eyes met again and she smiled, though a tear dripped down her cheek. Madge wiped it away quickly. "I love you. If this is what you want to do, I support you."
"Madge," Gale leaned upwards and groaned, his chest pulling tight. "I can't ask you to stay with me."
"Do you want me to?"
"Yes," Gale sighed. "Yes, more than anything, but if it's going to cause you so much stress that you can't even sleep…" She pulled up his hands and kissed his fingertips. "I love you," Gale whispered, staring at her with soft eyes. "I'll be more careful. But like you said, it's unpredictable."
"As long as you come home to me when it's all over," she said, "I think I'll be okay."
"I'll come home," Gale responded strongly. And he always did.