In Flames // 9-1-1 Fox (seasons 1-4)

twenty-four

She waved goodnight to the three others helping get their person into cars and then fished into her pocket to grab Eddie's keys to open his passenger side door. He moaned in protest as she gently nudged him towards the door but luckily he climbed in himself. She shut the door behind him and then jogged over to the other side and had to use the nerf bar to wiggle her way up. Mariana wasn't super short, just about five foot five, but Eddie had a good seven inches on her.

The drive to his house was quiet aside from the soft snores escaping the giant next to her. Mariana glanced over at him at a red light, a small smile on her face at the sight of his tousled hair falling into his face and the peaceful expression he held. Eddie was usually very stoic and hard which was probably due to his time in the Army. She found him hard to read sometimes but seeing him with such a peaceful look made her chest feel a little tight. Her nursing education warned her that it could be a possible heart attack but the rational portion of her brain reassured her that it was called emotions.

That's...not okay. Her brain was beginning to panic. Mariana smacked the radio on, grimacing at the sounds of country coming out of the speakers. I mean, he was from Texas but really? Instead, she quickly switched it to one of her favorite Spanish radio stations to drown out her thoughts.

She memorized his address from the various times she and Buck had hung out with him and Christopher. The neighbor was quiet considering everyone was at work and school so that meant no one would witness Mariana trying to help carry him into the house.

Or a better thought, she could just wake him. She shut off the engine and hesitated before leaning over, gently shaking his shoulder. His eyes snapped open and no amount of drugs in his system could slow him down. Eddie sat straight up, a wild look in his eyes.

"Hey, hey. You're fine. I just drove you home," Mariana explained soothingly. She'd seen that look in people's eyes before. She'd seen it in her own eyes after a long night of memories. "Let's get you inside and in bed before you fall asleep on me again."

"Christopher..." he mumbled out.

"Carla's driving him home and I'll take care of him while you rest. Okay?"

He nodded and fumbled for the handle to open the door, practically falling out of the car after Mariana helped unbuckle him. His house keys were luckily on the same ring as his car keys and soon, she had the front door pushed open.

"Go get out of these clothes and then get into bed. I've got Christopher and I'll bring water and dinner by later," she ordered. He didn't even try to protest and stumbled off towards his bedroom while she gravitated towards the kitchen. There were some dishes piled up in the sink so she set about cleaning and putting those in the dishwasher before she wiped down the counters. Satisfied with her work, she checked the cabinets and frowned at the lack of baking supplies. She could make do with what Eddie had but it would be basic chocolate cookies.

After she was shot, Mariana needed an outlet. She couldn't work, couldn't do anything strenuous, and couldn't return to her old habit of driving. So she baked. Mariana would neither confirm nor deny that she had an extensive Pinterest board. Buck wouldn't breathe a word of it knowing that he would lose access to her baked goods.

By the time she had the first batch of cookies pulled out of the oven, Carla was walking in with Christopher. Mariana gladly accepted the hug the young boy offered and she promised him the first cookie once they cooled enough.

"Where's my dad?" he asked.

"Your dad, Buck, Hen, and Chimney got sick at work because of someone trying to pull a prank. So your dad is sleeping right now. You're stuck with me for the night. How does that sound?"