A Slow Burn // Brian 'Otis' Zvonecek // Chicago Fire ✔️

46 || HOTEL

A second shift spread out amongst the CFD was not something that anybody was looking forward to, Riley most of all as she honestly hated being at firehouse fifty-one right now. Which was something she never, ever thought she'd say.

The house was full of strangers. People she didn't know. People she couldn't trust. It was no longer the same fifty-one that had brought her back from the slump she'd been in after her brother died, and if truth be told, she didn't know how much more of it she could put up with.

"Geez, what did that punching bag ever do to you?" Severide chuckled out as he returned, sandwich in hand, to the Squad table, where Riley was currently standing next to beating the ever loving crap out of said punching bag.

Riley's eyes found Severide's quickly before he took a seat in his recliner, spinning it a little so he could still see Riley behind him. She hit the bag, rather hard, one last time before she let out the rather deep breath she'd been holding in the entire time.

"Missing Otis?" Severide asked as he threw a chip into his mouth, watching as the rather sweaty Riley undid the straps on her boxing gloves with her teeth.

"No." She breathed out before her brow furrowed a little in confusion over her answer. She did miss him, obviously, but that wasn't exactly what her mood was about. "Well yes actually, but that's not all." She added as she slumped down in one of the empty seats at the table.

If Otis could see her now, sitting at the Squad table. Honestly it would probably send him into a complete and utter panic as he'd end up thinking she was joining them or something, despite her reluctancy to go in or near water.

"Missing the old fifty-one?" Severide suggested, his slightly sympathetic tone in which he spoke made it clear that he also missed the old fifty-one, and his old crew. His new guys, if he was being honest, sucked. Thank God he still had Tony.

Riley nodded her head a touch sadly, running the back of her hand over her sweaty forehead as she leaned back in her chair and got her breath back.

"This firehouse, the people in it. They brought me back from something I never thought I could ever come back from." Riley began, sighing deeply as she looked past Severide to the brick wall behind him. "And sure, I had a rough start here but after that everyone welcomed me in with open arms... But now over half of those people are gone and it just... It just sucks honestly."

Riley didn't really know how to put it other than saying that it's sucked. Because it really and truly sucked big time that those she called her family were no longer with her in the one place she needed them most.

"Not gonna lie, I'm kinda tempted to just pay Anderson off so we can get our guys back." Riley added with a chuckle, not wanting to stay in her damp mood any longer. Obviously she was joking as she'd never use her wealth like that, nor would she ever give a penny of it to someone like Anderson, but she wouldn't deny that it really was tempting.

🔔 Squad 3, Truck 81, Ambo 61, Truck 89, Truck 68, Truck 72, Truck 93. Hotel Fire 🔔

"Hotel fire?" Riley repeated, her eyebrow arching just a little as she got to her feet. "This can't be good." She mumbled as threw her gloves on the seat she'd just left and ran quickly towards the Truck, where she was surprised to see the floaters had already reached and were climbing into their gear.

She guessed that every firefighter, whether they were lazy or not, knew just how bad hotel fires could be which is why they knew they had to hurry if they wanted to save as many lives as the possibly could.

Pulling the Truck door shut after her, Riley quickly flipped the switch for the siren and soon enough she was leading the companies as they flew down the road towards the hotel. The hotel which thankfully wasn't the Drake otherwise she'd be needing to replan her entire wedding.