Later
"Ma, you know Arnold is one phone call away, that is if he isn't busy." Spinelli shrugged. She was currently with her mother who decided to drop by for a visit. "But just like you, I wasn't expecting him to get called in for another shift, I mean like, come on already!"
"Bob and I are sorry we didn't show up last night, Pookie, but I never thought he'd be gone this morning." Flo answered while she held Andy. "If you want, Bob and I can come back later today-" Her daughter interrupted. "No, wait! Actually, I was wondering if maybe…. Maybe you could stick around for a while and keep me company? I mean, Phoebe's at Med, Arnold and Pep are on shift, and I'm stuck here all alone with a baby and two dogs! Please, Mom?" Spinelli asked.
Flo smiled. "I'll be glad to stay with you, Pookie."
"Say, uh, Mom? About our wedding date…" Spinelli partially blushed since she isn't one to talk about those kinds of things often.
Meanwhile
"Alright, Squad, let's take a ride." Arnold told his unit.
"Where are we headed?" Dean asked. "You'll see." Arnold replied after closing the truck door. Pep only shrugged as she followed behind Arnold.
Minutes Later…
"You know, Mom, one thing I can't believe is how fast these two have grown. Look at this guy, he's just as tall as the sofa!" Spinelli mentioned Diesel, who soon hopped over the couch and decided to sit there.
As Flo was about to say something, a truck horn chirped outside, catching their attention.
"The hell was that?" Spinelli asked. Then, a siren chirped once. Spinelli and her mother decided to check out what that noise was.
Spinelli ended up opening the door to see her husband-to-be, Arnold, who flashed a smile at her with his arms open.
"I thought I'd decide to drop by and give a warm surprise, no?" Arnold smiled and soon hugged Spinelli.
"You and all your damn romantic acts, dammit!" Spinelli chuckled after she jumped into his arms. Arnold kissed her cheek after.
"Of course, why didn't I think it was going to be here?" Pep crossed her arms with a smile. "Hey, you gotta admire their chemistry too." Dean added while leaning on the truck.
"Squad 55, person trapped, 5920 Rhodes Campus Drive." Dispatch radioed.
"We got work to do." Arnold let go of Spinelli and shrugged. "I'll meet you later tonight." He kissed her forehead and turned to his team. "Alright, guys, let's move it." He then replied on his radio. "Dispatch, this is Squad 55, we're on route."
Later
Soon, Squad 55 was at the address, where they were inside of what appeared to be the inside of a football stadium…
"Oooh, hell yeah. Feels like sweetness is about to hit the gridiron!" Dean started. "Don't think we get lots of calls here, no?" He asked. Suarez shook his head.
Soon, a man approached them. "Hey, this way! I don't know how much longer he can hold out!"
"What happened?" Pep asked.
"Our electrician, Dennis, I guess he got too comfortable up there, wasn't paying attention. He wasn't paying attention, took a step backward, and just went right over. I swear, I thought he was dead!" They all went outside to the football field.
"Where is he?" Arnold asked as they looked around.
"Up top, Lieutenant." Dean pointed, where they saw the man hanging from an orange rope.
Soon, everyone went to the top of the stadium rooftop, the VIP area, specifically.
Arnold saw where Dennis was hanging. "HEY, DENNIS! TRY NOT TO MOVE!" He looked back at his crew. "Shake a leg, guys. Cruz, get two lines ready. You and me will rappel down to either side of him."
Cruz froze for a second. "Uh… Hey, uh, Clemente's ready to go. You want to give her a shot?" Arnold looked at Pep. "You ready?"
"Ready as ever." She replied and immediately grabbed the harness.
Within a minute, Arnold and Pep had their harnesses secured and they went over the ledge and started to rappel down to Dennis.
"Nice and easy!" They slowly rappelled down.
"It's alright, Dennis, we got you!"
Dennis's line suddenly dropped him lower, making him scream in horror.
"AAAAAH!"
"HEY! HEY! HEY!"
The two immediately rappelled a little lower.
"Alright, Clemente, get his arm free!" Arnold got a hold of Dennis's harness.
"Stay still for me!" Pep started to free his arm. She soon got his arm out of the black wire. "He's out!"
Arnold motioned them to lower them down to the bleachers area. Dennis, Arnold, and Pep were now being lowered cautiously to the bleachers below them.
"That's it! Easy!"
They finally reached the seating where two paramedics awaited them. They helped in unbuckling their harnesses and belts.
"Hey, you guys are gonna want to check on his right arm." Arnold told the two paramedics. "Got it." The paramedics soon took Dennis with them.
Pep unbuckled herself. "Nice work, Lieutenant."
"Nice work yourself back there. Great work." Arnold patted her shoulder. The two smiled at each other.
Later At The Firehouse…
Squad 55 drove inside the engine bay and found the 'Old Beast' sitting there, looking rusted as ever.
The brakes hissed as everyone soon got out of the truck.
"Any update on Jason?" Arnold asked his Captain. Michelle shook her head. "Wish we had any news right now." She put down her clipboard after rechecking Truck 237, AKA the Old Beast. "Crazy call?" She smirked at the Lieutenant.
"Nothing new that we don't face." He rolled his eyes with a smile. Michelle shook her head while smiling. Arnold soon pulled out his phone to try and reach out to Murray.
The phone started dialing.
"Come on, man, pick up…!" He only reached his voicemail. "This is Murray, leave a message."
"Hey, uh, Murray, listen… I want to talk with you. I found out about your medical exam, um… I never meant to have you kicked off Squad but if you can return my call or something, that'd be great…" Arnold then hung up and soon sighed sharply.
Stella walked by. "Commanding officers, in my office." She went to go get Michelle.
In the Battalion Chief's office…
"You wanted to see us, Chief?" Michelle asked.
Stella then pulled out a file. "Uh, yeah… I wanted to quickly update you two on the assignments of Engine, Truck, and Squad. With Smith and Clemente being transferred onto Squad, Gibson will be on Truck, Engine should stay the same, and I'll bring in Smith and Clemente to discuss their futures. I can only have one of them stay on Squad while one will be back on Engine. I'm also thinking of discussing with Chief Tiburg about bringing in one more member for Truck." She then handed over two papers that had the truck assignments.
"Hm… Not bad." Michelle said.
"I'd say this is great!" Arnold added. They soon handed over the papers after having a good look at the assignments.
"Also, about Truck, I'll have to figure out what'll happen. Either we get it refurbished, or hopefully, we'll get another new one despite the fact we have such a turnover ratio in just about everything." She lowered her eyelids. "Anyhow, I'll have to figure that out. Now get outta here." She sat down and got on the phone with F.D. headquarters.
Arnold briefly tapped Michelle's shoulder. "Hey. Just know that ever since your promotion to Captain, I've been jealous you out-ranked me. Along with the extra bugle." He smirked.
"Mmm." She rolled her eyes with a smile.
Later That Night
It was a busy night at Silver Tigers Bar, but even more busy with it being a fundraiser night for Jason and his family.
"Hey! Attention everyone!" Dean started. "Just got off the phone with the Chief, who's at Med, and I'm happy to say that Jason Morrison is AWAKE AND TALKING WITH THE DOCTORS!" Everyone started to cheer and clap for Jason. Tommy gave a big sigh of relief. "But he has a long road of recovery ahead of him and his family is counting on us for the help. So keep that money coming in for them!"
Travis patted Tommy's shoulder. "At least you're at ease, somewhat."
"Ain't that the truth?..." He replied.
The Very Next Morning…
All of House 55 went to see Jason at the hospital now that he was finally awake.
Both Chief Shortman and Chief Tiburg were already there. Stella was in street clothes with a hoodie and black jeans.
Arnold came up to them. "Chief, we heard Morrison was awake. We wanted to swing by and bring him a gift." Arnold showed the envelope with money. "He's up." Stella started. "And he's also come clean."
Everyone looked over.
"He said Lieutenant Welch gave him the nod." Stella added. "A signal, Morrison understood 'Beat 55 to the scene, come hell or high water'. Morrison and Welch are taking the heat for this one. You're off the hook, Tommy." Chief Tiburg said. Tommy couldn't believe it as a few tears built up in his eyes. All of his friends were happy and relieved for him.
"Arnold, hun, while we have Chief Tiburg, any answer for Clemente or Smith on Squad?" Stella asked. "I- I'm afraid not, Chief. I'll need to discuss this with them. But, I did talk with Vic yesterday, and she said she'd be happy to take over Clemente's spot on Engine 55." He replied.
"Vic Doss to Engine? Ok, sounds good. The spot is hers for the meantime. Any updates on assignments, you let me know." Chief Tiburg replied. Murray soon walked up to Arnold and Stella.
"Wait, Chief, if Doss is moving to Engine, that means there's an opening on Aid Car, right?" Murray asked. "That's right." Stella nodded.
"Looks like you have a chance to stay with us, Murray." Arnold patted his shoulder as Stella walked away.
Murray and Arnold walked into Jason's room. "Morrison…"
"How are you feeling?" Arnold asked. "... Hanging in there…" Jason smiled."This is Danielle, my wife." They looked over. "Dani, this is Lieutenant Shortman of Squad 55."
"Hey. We got both houses together, and hopefully, this will be enough until Jason is back on his feet." Arnold handed over the envelope with the money. Danielle took the envelope. "Thank you. He will be back on his feet. You watch." She smiled while rubbing his leg.
Tommy soon came in and walked up to Jason. Jason reached out for a handshake, and Tommy shook his hand.
"Thank you." Tommy said.
"We heard about your statement. Took a lot of guts to admit to something like that." Arnold mentioned. "Yeah. But we reap what we sow, right?" Jason replied.
Arnold looked over at Welch, who had a right black eye from the accident. "So they say…"
Half an Hour Later…
At home, Arnold walked into the living room, finding Spinelli on the couch.
"I just got off the phone with my Mom. She told me that Welch will be stripped of his Lieutenant title and will be suspended for 90 days with a fifty thousand dollar fine. Isn't that great?" He soon sat next to her.
Spinelli kicked her feet up on the table. "That doesn't begin to describe how I feel. That's more than great…" She gave a devious smile at Arnold. "Alright, let's not start doing anything before-"
Their doorbell rang.
"About time we get to talk to my parents!" Spinelli got up and went to the front door with Arnold following her.
Arnold opened the door to see it was Mr. and Mrs. Spinelli. "Mom! Dad! Ugh, am I glad we can finally talk with you guys!" Spinelli hugged her parents.
"Oh, Pookie!" Flo smiled while rubbing her daughter's back.
Spinelli soon let go as they walked inside.
As they walked to the living room, both Bandit and Diesel jumped in excitement and followed.
Bob and Flo sat down together while Arnold and Spinelli sat on a different couch.
"Alright, you two, what's on your minds?" Bob asked.
Arnold smiled as he held Spinelli's hand. "Mr. and Mrs. Spinelli, Spinelli and I were thinking as of late, well, ever since the hotel fire… We don't want to wait and have time pass us by only to have our time possibly cut short after running into a burning building…" Arnold looked at Spinelli and let out a deep sigh. "We have decided to bump up our wedding date to a month and a half from now." He finished.
"Listen, Arnold, we- we understand you guys want to move it up, we do, but that doesn't change the fact that… that you probably don't make it out of a burning building." Bob mentioned. "Bob!" Flo exclaimed at him.
"Mr. Spinelli, we both understand the dangers of our job, but-" Spinelli stopped Arnold. "Dad, we clearly know the dangers and we signed up for it since the Academy! The reason we're telling you this is that… is that we love each other, I've never met someone who's made me feel special, happy, and- and mainly just loved overall!"
Bob and Flo smiled.
"And we can't tell you how happy we are for you, Pookie, and that's why if you want your wedding date moved up, then so be it, honey." Flo replied with a smile. "We know how much Arnold makes you happy, and all we want for you is to be happy, Pookie." Bob added with a smile.
"So, any idea on what day?" Flo asked.
"We're thinking maybe a Wednesday or so?" Spinelli replied, rather unsure. "Hey, that sounds good, no?" Arnold added.
"Perfect!" Flo smiled. "Just leave all that to us!" Bob smiled.
Spinelli briefly looked around before looking at Arnold. "Hey, uh, Mom? Dad? Do you mind if Arnold and I step out for a few minutes? We woke up like a half hour ago and we didn't shower yet so uh…" She got up and yanked Arnold's hand. "Uh, we gotta go, we'll meet you after!"
After the two left the Spinellis in the living room with their pets…
Two Minutes Later…
As shower water trickled down, two lovebirds were naked in the shower together close to each other.
"You sure you up for it? I mean, your parents are out there!" Arnold slightly chuckled. Spinelli slid her hands slowly down his arms. "We haven't had sex in forever since we're constantly busy, but I don't care, let's do it now. Right here. Right now." She gave a devious smile.
"You have that look…" Arnold smirked.
"Just get over here and shut up!" Spinelli yanked his head and pulled him into a wet, passionate kiss with her tongue slipping into his mouth.
They separated for a moment. "I've been waiting for this for so long… I love you so damn much, Arnold." Spinelli smiled at him.
"And I love you, Ashley Spinelli." Arnold smiled and they kept kissing, with their hands rubbing around their naked wet bodies, the two kissed like there was no tomorrow and like they never wanted to separate…
Half an Hour Later…
Arnold and Spinelli came out of their bedroom, mostly whispering, giggling, and laughing with each other.
"EMS Plan Two, all units respond. Fifth Box Alarm, all units respond. Station 19, Station 45, Station 24, Station 23, Station 55…" Arnold's radio went off in the living room.
"Shit!"
Moments Before The Alarm…
Michelle was in her office admiring the badge Stella handed over to her at the Firefighter's Ball. She saw two framed photos on her desk. One of her father and her, and another photo which surprisingly had her and Arnold.
The station alarm went off. She put the badge down and soon got up and ran to the engine bay.
Sirens wailed as the trucks raced out of the station with the Battalion pickup racing ahead of the four vehicles.
Fifteen Minutes Later
After fifteen minutes, a 1970s Engine arrived at the site of the fire. A recycling plant. The brakes hissed while it stopped as a 1970 Seagrave Pierce Snorkel soon arrived with its sirens wailing. Unlike modern trucks, the older trucks had a different siren sound to them.
Two red-helmet Lieutenants hopped out off the Ladder and Engine along with the other members hopping out. The two Lieutenants met up.
"So much for a day off at all…" Arnold shrugged while Spinelli rolled her eyes. "I just hope we'll at least be done by the afternoon." She replied while adjusting her SCBA.
They soon met up with their team and more firefighters from other companies. They were all with the Battalion Chief and Deputy Chief.
"Welcome to the party, we've been battling this thing for the past hour and it's gotten out of control very quick." The Deputy Chief started. "Most of us just got here…" Stella quietly mumbled.
"We're dealing with a fire in a pile of titanium shavings, there was an explosion, and some of our own caught shrapnel and burns but they're being treated, and a few of them are headed to MedStar. Now, we're fighting it from the exterior but we still have several workers trapped inside so we have several primary search teams inside. Alright now, be safe, be smart, and don't die. Get to work, everyone!" The Deputy Chief dismissed everyone as he started discussing the layout with the Captain of 24, Captain Presley.
As Arnold and Spinelli headed over to their Squad company, Arnold opened the truck door to get his halligan while Spinelli grabbed an axe from the compartment area.
"Hey, Spin, isn't funny how like forty minutes we were 'busy' with each other?" Arnold smirked at her as he closed the truck door. Spinelli whacked his back. "You ass!" She chuckled. "Let's just get this fire out and when we head home, we'll see about it." She hit his shoulder while smiling as she walked away. Arnold smiled as he followed behind.
As the two walked away together, Donovan was several feet behind them with a supply line for a different Engine company.
"I just wanted some sleep this morning…!" He complained as he headed to Engine 24.
As several raised Aerial Ladders sprayed at the fire, just about every fire truck in the city was seen at the recycling plant fire along with an EMS Plan Two, meaning a lot of Aid Cars were also at the fire.