Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own EMERGENCY!, the characters, Mark VII Productions, Inc. or Universal Studios.

I only own this fictional story.

I have no medical background. I am simply a fan of EMERGENCY! and my ideas are inspired by the show.

"Calm down. Take it easy. You're gonna be alright. Just take it easy." Johnny tried to calm the man, but he wasn't having much luck. The man was understandably terrified of being buried alive. "We're gonna get you out of here safe and sound. You just have to do what we tell you to do. Understand?"

The man looked back and forth between Johnny and Roy, and then he nodded.

"There are other firemen on the surface. They are shoring up the opening to make it safe." Roy explained. "When everything is set up, you'll get out first. Now, you're sure you're not hurt anywhere?"

"No, no, I'm okay."

"Gage, DeSoto, we're set on our side." Captain Hammer called through the Handie-Talkie. "Let us know when you're ready to send him up."

"Ten-four, Cap."

"Alright, they've got it all secure. Stay in the middle as much as possible. There still may be some shifting, so be careful." The man nodded. "You'll have to be quick, but don't panic. We'll get you out safe."

"Okay, Cap, we're sending him up." Roy told them through the handie-talkie.

"Ten-four."

Secured by the rope around his waist, the man began climbing upward as the others pulled on it.

Halfway up, some dirt fell on the man, causing him to panic. He climbed faster. As he climbed faster, his foot hit some of the boards shoring up the opening. That caused more dirt to fall, which made the man panic even more. He kicked one of the boards loose. Roy and Johnny jumped back as the board and some dirt came crashing down.

"Hey! Watch it!" shouted Johnny. "Be careful!"

More dirt and boards fell. Johnny and Roy scrambled to the other side of the cave.

The opening had caved in. There was a small opening but they wouldn't get out of there quickly. The opening wasn't big enough for either of them to get through. Besides, it was too unstable.

"Gage? DeSoto? Are you guys alright?" squawked the handie-talkie.

"Yeah, Cap, we're okay. Did the victim get out?"

"He's safe. We'll work on shoring things up again."

"Ten-four."

Johnny looked around the cave. "Aw, man, all this because of a stupid prank."

"Yeah, but I guess it could've been worse. It could've collapsed when we were climbing out."

"Surprisingly," said Johnny as he carefully poked at the cave opening, "this isn't the first time I've been in this kind of situation."

"Was that because of one of your pranks?" Roy teased his partner.

"Ha-ha. No." Johnny splayed his hand on his chest. "I was also the rescuer that time." He poked at the dirt again. "I don't think we'll do much good from down here. It's too unstable." Johnny sighed. "Probably should've warned you. I get into a lot of situations like this. Over at tens, between me and my partner Tony, I was usually the one diving head first into the rescues."

Roy had heard some stories about his new partner. He'd wondered if they'd been exaggerated. He was seeing for himself; those stories weren't exaggerated by much. "Wonder why that is?" Roy hadn't meant to say that out loud, but he had.

Johnny shrugged. "Guess I just wanna give every rescue, every victim, 100% of me. I don't want someone else to go through…" The last word trailed off, and Johnny stopped. He'd said too much.

Roy looked over at his partner. Had he lost someone close to him due to an accident? "If you ever need to talk about anything," offered Roy.

"Nothing to talk about. Work is work, and everything else is …isn't."

Johnny wanted to say everything else was private, but he didn't want to sound rude. He didn't think Roy was trying to pry into his life, as others had.

Roy watched in amazement as his normally happy-go-lucky partner shut down. He instantly became stoic. Granted, they'd only been working together for a few weeks, he'd seen him angry but he'd never seen him like that. Roy didn't want to force him to share things, but he thought opening up might help him.

The new paramedics were friendly toward one another, but they didn't know much about each other. Roy didn't know how long it would take for them to get out of this cave. But it would seem to take longer if they remained silent.

Roy didn't know if it would work, but he thought it was worth a try. He needed to get Johnny to talk about something, anything.

"So, I, uh, guess from the way you flirt with the nurses, you're not married?"

Johnny chuckled. His mood had been lifted, just like that. "No, no, I'm a confirmed bachelor. I'm not saying it won't ever happen, someday. But what about you?" he asked. "I met your wife at that party Dixie had, but I've heard rumors that you're a family man."

"Yeah," Roy smiled. "Joanne and I have been married for about four years, but we've known each other since the fourth grade."

Johnny shook his head and laughed, "I can't imagine that. My last long-term relationship was back when I was in high school, and that was only for a few months."

Roy also laughed. "We didn't date exclusively the whole time. We dated other people during and after high school. After graduation, I went to college for a bit and was a medic in the military for a few years. When I got back here, Joanne and I were both available, so we started dating. And the rest, as they say, is history."

Johnny's smile turned to a frown. "Sounds something like my parents. They got married right out of high school. I don't know, maybe that's why I can't settle down with one girl. I know I'll never find something like what they had."

Roy appreciated the fact that Johnny was opening up, but he didn't want to push him too far. He had noticed earlier how Johnny rarely shared any personal information, unlike the others.

Johnny didn't seem to notice him mentioning his parents, so Roy continued, "Not long after we were married, we had Christopher, Chris. He's now three, and we had Jenny last year. Well, her name is Janine, but Chris couldn't say that, so she became Jenny. You don't know crazy until you have a toddler and a baby. Sometimes, there's enough chaos in the house, that it rivals a multiple-alarm fire."

As any proud father would do, Roy pulled out his wallet and showed Johnny some pictures.

"Cute kids. They must take after their mother."

"Ha-ha. Very funny," chuckled Roy.

For some reason, Johnny found it easy talking to Roy. He was different from everyone else. Roy never seemed to be prying into his past. There was something about the way Roy listened that made Johnny want to share things.

"So," said Johnny, "you from around here?"

"Yeah, well, I haven't lived in this area all my life. But I was born and raised in Southern California. What about you?"

"Naw, when I was little, I lived on a res …uh, um, a ranch. My family moved around a lot when I was in middle school; my dad's job. Around the time I started high school, we moved to this area. I've lived around here ever since."

Johnny hoped Roy wouldn't notice how he'd almost said "reservation" but quickly changed it to "ranch." When they moved around a lot, he started saying he grew up on a ranch because people treated him strangely when they learned he'd lived on a reservation.

"That must have been tough moving around so much?"

"Yeah, at that age, things are rough enough without uprooting everything every few months." Generally, Johnny didn't care to talk too much about his past.

One question kept needling Johnny's mind. Why was Roy so passionate about this paramedics program? Would it be hypocritical of him not to want to share things but to pry into Roy's thoughts and reasons?

After giving it some thought, Johnny decided to ask anyway.

"So, uh, why're you so interested in this paramedics program? You can tell me to shut up if that's too personal. I'll understand. I mean …"

"No, no, it's okay. Well, I didn't always want to be a firefighter. There was a station down the street of my high school. They fascinated me, but I didn't think much of it.

"I had no idea what I wanted to do once I got out of the military. I could've become an accountant like my dad, but that didn't feel right. I didn't like the idea of sitting behind a desk all day.

"A friend of mine said he was going to become a firefighter. I remembered how the trucks had fascinated me. I thought, why not. Didn't know if I'd be any good at it. Turns out I was. It got into my blood. I don't know, I can't explain it."

Johnny nodded in agreement. "I get it. It's a part of you."

Roy took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Well, about a year or so after I became a firefighter, there was a summer party." He paused, his eyes distant for a moment. "Joanne's little nephew, he...he fell into the pool. By the time we got him out of the water, he wasn't breathing."

Johnny's brow furrowed, and his stomach tightened. He didn't like where this was going.

Roy continued, "Someone called for an ambulance, and I started CPR. I didn't know what else to do. It was the first time I'd had to do that. I'd never been so scared. This was a real life-or-death situation.

"I don't know if anyone breathed easy until he started breathing on his own. I know I didn't."

Johnny released the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding.

"Afterward, it really shook me. What if I hadn't been there? What if the ambulance couldn't get there in time? A fire station was closer. Should they have been called?

"I don't know. I just felt there should be something ... more. And when this program came about, maybe it was the "more" I had been looking for."

"I'm not kidding myself. I realize it's not perfect, but it's gotta be better than nothing."

Again, Johnny nodded. He understood. "The kid, he was …was he okay?"

Roy smiled, "Yeah, he's turning out to be a great swimmer."

Johnny thought about what Roy had just shared with him. He'd shared it relatively easily. For some reason, that made Johnny want to share more - things he'd never told anyone. How did Roy do that?

It had taken Johnny more than a year to tell Tony that his parents had died. He didn't share any details, but to Johnny's relief, Tony didn't press.

Johnny realized he and Roy were more similar than they were different. They both wanted to help people to the best of their ability. And they were both new to this new program. It was a program many didn't understand. They both shared a passion, determination, and a desire to help people.

As Johnny saw it, it was kind of like the two of them against the world.

They were a team. Johnny wanted to make sure they were the best damn team around. And to be that, they needed to know things about each other.

"I, uh," Johnny closed his eyes. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He remained silent for a while. They both wondered if he'd continue. "I …I, I, I lost my parents when I was in high school."

"I'm sorry." Johnny surprised Roy with that statement.

Johnny opened his eyes and stared straight ahead, gazing at the wall of the cave.

"We, uh …" Johnny needed a moment before continuing. He took another deep breath. "We, we'd been arguing about money and, and girls. My, my temper got the best of me, and I stormed out.

"When I'd finally calmed down and went back home, I came across a single vehicle accident."

Johnny chuckled, "It's funny how I know all the right things to do now.

"It, it was my mom and dad. I tried to get them out, but the doors were jammed." He looked down at his hands. Most of the scars had faded away.

"Guess my mom died instantly. She hit her head on the windshield. I, uh …I always hoped she never felt any pain."

"She probably didn't," whispered Roy. He never imagined this was what his partner carried with him. He couldn't imagine practically witnessing a loved one's death.

"Dad died later that day at the hospital. I've, uh, I've been alone ever since."

The two sat in silence for a while.

"How old were you?"

"Fifteen. So, it's been about ten years."

Roy thought he understood why Johnny pushed himself so hard during rescues. Was he blaming himself for his parents' death?

"Johnny, it wasn't your fault. You know that, right?"

Johnny took another deep breath. "But if I …"

"It wasn't your fault. You were only fifteen, not much more than a kid. It wasn't your fault."

Johnny looked over at Roy. Did he mean that?

Roy noticed that the hint of sadness he often saw in Johnny's eyes was now fully engulfing his younger partner. But he thought he also saw a bit of hope.

"Do you really think it wasn't my fault? I mean, no one has ever said they blamed me, but no one's said I wasn't to blame"

"Johnny, it was not your fault. It was just an unfortunate accident. You know that accidents happen. We see that all the time."

"Guess you're right." Johnny shook his head slightly. "I tried not to let it get to me. I mean, at first, I just kinda withdrew into myself. But, I don't know, nobody seemed to notice."

"So, did you live with friends or family?"

"No, I was bounced around foster care until they found my dad's sister. I lived with my aunt and her husband for a couple of years until I turned eighteen."

Roy's heart ached for the younger version of the man next to him.

Johnny noticed Roy's concerned expression. "It wasn't always that bad." He shrugged in a nonchalant way. "I mean, yeah, it was rough sometimes, but it wasn't always horrible. I wasn't beaten regularly or anything like that. I had food and shelter. Those people provided for me. Most people wouldn't and weren't interested in taking in an angry, hurting teenager. I was lucky not to be forgotten and abandoned."

Roy read between the lines. If Johnny said he hadn't been beaten regularly, but did that mean he had been occasionally abused?

After a moment, Johnny let out a shuddering breath. His shoulders slumped, and then he ran his hands through his hair. "I've never told anyone that. I mean, I eventually told Tony that my parents died, but I told him nothing else."

"I'm honored that you told me. And don't worry, I won't tell anyone."

"Wellll, you can tell your wife. I mean, you probably tell her everything, right? Like, you've told her about me? Uh, so, does she have any single friends?"

Johnny sounded like his old self. Roy grinned, "Yeah, I've told Joanne about my new, impulsive partner.

"But seriously, I'll only tell her that you lost your parents when you were young. She'll understand. Joanne lost her father when she was ten. Her mother remarried, but …"

"Oh, that's rough. I can't imagine that."

"Is that why you work so hard during rescues?"

Johnny shrugged again in his nonchalant way. "I don't know," he said. "Guess I just want to do all I can to make sure they get to go home to their families."

"Gage? DeSoto?" the handie-talkie squawked, startling them.

"Yeah, Cap, we're here."

"We've almost got this ready for you two to get out of there."

"Ten-four, Cap. We're ready whenever you are."

Johnny rubbed his eyes and then stretched. "Oh man, I just want to sleep for a week." He said. "Didn't realize sharing all that stuff would wear me out so much."

"Guess you'd been carrying the weight of that by yourself for too long. I never expected you to tell me that."

"Well, I dunno, it just …felt like I needed to. By the way, thank you for listening.

"Oh, hey, can I ask you something? You can tell me to shut up, I'll understand."

"Sure, ask anything."

"What about your parents? Are they …?"

"Oh, yeah, I still have my parents. They divorced soon after I graduated. Dad moved up north, and mom eventually moved to Arizona. Every now and then, we take a vacation to visit them."

"Oh, okay," Johnny grinned, "glad you didn't have a pathetic story like mine."

A couple of ropes dropped down the cave entrance. "We're all set."

"On our way, Cap," Roy answered into the handie-talkie.

Roy patted Johnny on the shoulder. "C'mon, Junior, let's get outta here."

"Sure thing. Don't have to tell me twice." As they started climbing out, Johnny said, "Hey, do you, uh, well, um, would you, uh, like to come over to my place tomorrow night and watch the game?"

Roy grinned, "Yeah, sure." For some reason, Roy didn't think his partner let too many people get too close to him. It looked like that might be changing.