Baby Steps
JOSIE'S HEART RACED in her ear's as they sped down the road. The woman on the gurney wailed in pain, taking a deep breath with each contraction.
"You are doing just fine Alyssa, we are almost there." Josie reasure's her, she pant's with a painful smile. She looks up at Eddie, he continues to monitor her heart rate.His brown eyes meet her own, he makes a gesture with his hands, Keep talking, she nods her head.
"Hey! Hey do you have any name's picked out?" Josie wonder's, Alyssa groan's.
"We don't know...ahh." She groaned as she tried to speak, Josie nodded. "Alright that's it, just breathe." She soothes her, she huffs.
"We didn't wanna know, he wanted to be surprised." Alyssa explain's, Josie smirks at her explanation.
"Isn't it a surprise just to know you're pregnant?" Josie asked her with a chuckle, Alyssa chuckled softly. "You should have seen him when I told him I was." She tells her.
"What about?" Alyssa grit's her teeth,
"What about you two?" She wonder's, Josie raises a brow at her questions. The woman look's between the two paramedic's. "You guys have kids?"
"Uh unless you count a plant then no." Josie say's. Alyssa looked unamused, she clear's her throat eyeing Eddie to continue their conversation.
"I do, a son." He says to her.
"How old is he?" Alyssa wonder's. He quickly checked her morphine bag, and her heart monitor. "Seven." He answers.
"How did you know...what to name him?" She asks him, Eddie blink's puzzled.
"I didn't know." He says, she looked at him confused.
"My wife and I couldn't agree on a name, we went back and forth on name's. We thought we were never gonna figure it out." Eddie admits to her.
"Then he was here, and we named him Christopher." Eddie says to her, she chuckled through her pain. Josie smiled softly at their interactions.
"Once you meet them you will know." He says to her, her brown eyes filled with tears. She sniffled as she began to cry. Josie quickly got to her side.
"Hey Hey you're okay, we are almost there." Josie reassures her. With tears in her eye she shook her head. "I can't do this." She cries.
"I don't know what I'm doing." Alyssa admit's to her. She grit her teeth as another contraction broke through her again. Josie take's her hand in her own.
"What if I mess up this kid?" Alyssa worrie's, Josie shake's her head. "Hey, listen to me." She says to her in a kind voice.
"You are not going to mess this kid up, right now you are doing the best thing for them." Josie tells her. She sniffles.
"And what is that?" Alyssa asks her. Eddie glanced between the two women, the ebony haired girl smiled.
"You're caring about their well being." She chuckled lightly.
"That's the most important thing." Josie say's. Eddie smirked at her. For someone who doesn't have kids she is good with giving advice. Josie could feel his stare on her.
"How far are we?" Josie sit's up asking. "Three minutes, top's!" Alex's shout.
"You're doing great, Aylssa." Josie reasure's her. She groans in pain as she tightly holds onto the paramedic's hand.
"Say uh how did you meet Isiah?" Josie wonder's. Alyssa pant's looking between the two of them.
"Jogging, I tripped over his equipment." She explains to her. "Equipment huh, what was he doing?" She wonder's.
"Photographer, he was taking action shots.''She says. Josie nod's her head listening to her. "And what does that make you huh, what do you do?" The paramedic asked her.
"Art teacher." She grit's.
"That's so cool, I literally can't draw anything to save my life." Josie chuckle's. Alyssa chuckle's lightly, she grunts in pain as she yells from her contraction.
"I don't know why I wanted to do this. Alyssa, her eye's meet her dark brown eyes. "Those stupid movie's lie." She joke's leaning her head back.
"How far apart are her contraction's?" Eddie ask's Josie, She looked between him and the woman on the gurney. "Ive been timing five mintue's, you?" She ask's him.
"About the same." Eddie answer's. Alyssa pant's.
"How long have you been feeling those contraction's for Alyssa?" Josie wonder's. Her eye's widen.
"I dont know, before you guy's showed up, I didn't think it was too bad though." She admit's, she chuckle's.
"I have the worst timing, guess this kid does too." She joke's, Josie smirked at her humor, At least she is in good spirts, she think's. "Worse birthday ever." She grumble's.
"Oh I wouldn't say the worse." Josie reasure's. The ambulance comes to an abrupt stop making everyone jerk back in their seat's. Alex and Levi quickly exited the the rig, hurrying to the back to help the two of them. Josie could feel the woman's grip on her hand tighten as another contraction hit.
"Get the front." Josie order's the two of them. They usher the woman out of the ambulance in front of the hospital. Alyssa's grip on her hand lessened as they bring her down. Nurse's in scrub's rush out.
"Woman in active labor!" Alex shout's to them. Josie step's down off the ambulance, with the help of Eddie pushing the other side. "Contraction's five minutes apart!" She state's.
"Get her in now!" One of the nurse's order's, they take Alyssa inside. Josie watched the group disappear inside of the hospital. She hoped that she had been fast enough to save both of their live's.
She pant's as she put's her hand's on her knee's. She could feel the weight of her wet clothe's on her back stick to her. In the heat of her emergency she had forgotten that her hair was soaking wet.
"Hey." A voice speak's, snapping her out of her thought's. "You good?" Eddie ask's her.
Her brown eye's look to him. She nod's her head. "Yeah, im okay." She reasure's him.
⍧⍧⍧
SHE HOLD'S the white towel close to herself. They had to give Eddie a ride back to the firehouse, she shivered against the leather, didn't help the ambulance was kept to a sixty degree's.
"That was impressive back there." Eddie speak's up. She looked over at him. "What was?" She ask's him.
"That dive." He say's. She leaned back in her seat. "Oh thank's." Josie say's. He smirked at her. She look's at him in the seat across from her. His hair was beginning to dry.
"You know you didn't have to dive in after to me." Josie tell's him, he shake's his head.
"I could have gotten her to the surface, I was close." She reasure's.
She was lying and knew it. There was no way she was gonna do it, the weight of the water was holding her back as was the woman she was saving.
"You didn't see what I saw." Eddie tell's her, she raised brow. "Oh yeah what was that?" Josie wonder's.
"You drowning in seven foot deep water." He state's. Her heart skipped a beat for a moment. His brown eye's notice her shifting in her seat, shivering.
"Well that's surprising, I was close to being an Olympic swimmer." Josie admit's to him, he smirks' at the information.
"What happened?" He ask's her.
She shrug's. "I got injured when I was fifteen, a piece of wood entered my leg, couldn't get my old speed back." She admit's. Her eye's drifted to her arm.
"Today is probably the first time in awhile since ive been in water." Josie tell's him. He nod's his head listening to her.
"I was suppose to be major leaguer." Eddie say's to her, she smile's softly.
"Really?" She say's surprised.
"Yeah, I almost got a full ride if I didn't break my hand."He recall's. She laugh's quietly shaking her head.
"Enlighten me, tell me how you managed that?" Josie ask's him. He shrug's. "No, not happening." He shake's his head, her jaw drop's shocked.
"Oh come on I told you mine, you tell me your's." She pressures, him he laugh's. "Your not gonna let this go, are you?" He ask's.
"Nope." She say's with a mischievous smirk, popping the P. He sit's up in his seat. "Okay fine."
"I was getting out of my truck, and I slammed the door on my hand." He tell's her. She cover's her mouth as she let out a laugh. "Im so sorry." She apologized while laughing.
He point's at her. "This exactly why I didn't wanna tell you." He state's.
She uncover's her mouth. "I said I was sorry." Josie defend's herself.
Josie shiver's in her seat again. Eddie remove's the white towel from around his shoulder's, handing it to her. "Here." He say's.
She shake's her hand. "I'm okay."
He lightly drop's it on her lap. She eyed him. "Thank's." He smirk's at her sarcasm.
"You mind me asking something?" Eddie wonder's, she raise's a brow.
"Depend's." Josie answers, he look's between the front of the ambulance and her. He lean's forward. "What's with you and buck?" He question's, she grumble's.
"Nothing is going on between me and buck, Why?" Josie ask's him, he shrug's.
"It just seem's like your avoiding him." He mention's, she shake's her head. "Okay and?" She ask's.
"Did you two..did you?" He stutter's, she raised a brow at his question wondering what he was asking. He make's gesture's with his hand's trying to be subtle. Her brown eye's widen as she get's his meaning
"No! No no we didn't." Josie reassures him, he leaned back, why would he care about who your hooking up with?, she wonder's.
"I saw him and Taylor Kelly in the bathroom." She admit's to him, he chuckled quickly covering his mouth. "What?" He laugh's.
"Now you get it." Josie shake's her head, he shake's his hand. "Im sorry that's not funny." He state's.
She shrug's. "Kind of is, it's just my luck I see one of my coworker's getting laid." Josie laugh's.
"I appreciate you concern Eddie." She say's with a smirk. His brown eye's looked her up and down as she relaxed into her seat.
"Well just looking out for a friend." He say's to her. That's what we are now, Josie think's to herself, she hadn't thought to consider any of the 118 as her friend's yet, they barely knew her enough, just that she didn't care for tight space's and spider's.
"And thank you for that." Josie say's. Eddie nodded his head.
"Dont be mad at Buck just because you dont care for Taylor Kelly." He tell's her, she groaned in defeat, maybe she was being too petty. He had a point, she cant blame Buck for his poor choice in women.
"Ill try." She say's.
"Oh and if was hooking up with someone behind people's back, you would know." She tell's him. He nod's his head, She messed with her wrist, thumbing the tattoo on her wrist. She could feel his gaze on her, her cheek's were growing warm.
"Not that I plan to do that." She grumble's. The Ambulance come's to a stop, the both of their back's hitting the seat's as they brake. Josie quickly undoes her belt, shaking off the towel around her shoulder's.
The ebony haired girl ushered past the firefighter, to get the door open. The bright sun shine's into the back of the ambulance, making her shield her eye's. Eddie jump's out the back, she grunt's as her feet hit the asphalt.
"Wondering where you guy's went!" A voice shout's. The two of them turn their head to see captain nash with his hand's on his hip's. "About to start lunch." He say's.
"You three are welcome to join." Nash tell's them. Josie smiled softly shaking head.
"Thank you sir but we already have plan's." She say's. Alex roll's her eye's at Josie. The fourth time she had turned down lunch from the 118 in week's, it was starting to irritate her.
"Well you are welcome any time." He say's with smile. She mock salute's him. "Thank you for that." Alex say's, he turned back inside the firehouse.
The blonde eyed her best friend. Josie raised a brow. "What!?" She exclaim's.
"You turned down a free lunch, again." Alex point's out, she shrug's her shoulder's. "Yeah we already order somewhere." Josie say's.
"Thats' bullshit and you know it." She state's crossing her arm's.
"I dont like breaking routine." Josie recalls to her plainly, she shake's her head. "Well sometime's you just have to break your routine." Alex state's.
"Okay but I have no idea when that day will be." Josie shut's her down. Alex looked between her friend and the firehouse.
"So what was that thing about hooking up behind people's back?" She wonder's. Josie groan's in annoyence at her question. "It's nothing." She say's.
"So your not planning on rekindling something are you?" Alex wonder's. Josie shake's her head.
"You know my rule now." Josie remind's her. The blonde smirk's nodding her head. "Not with coworker's, or someone familiar." She tells her.
"You know what they say about rules?" Alex ask's her, she scoff's playfully shaking her head.
"Hey Jo!" A voice shout's. She turn's her head seeing Eddie, holding a black T-shirt in his hand's. She furrowed her brow's.
"Till you get a dry one." Eddie say's, he tosses it to her, she caught it with ease. She smirked looking at him.
"Thank's." Josie say's. He nodded his head. He turned on his heel's, quickly looking over his shoulder. She could see him look back at her.
Josie got into the back of the ambulance, Alex shut's the door's behind her. She quickly pulling her heavy wet grey polo over shirt, slipping on the black shirt. The cloth went to her waist, it surprised her that it fit her, when usually when she see's shirt's on him they seem tight.
She brought her nose to the fabric, inhaling the scent. She could make out the faint smell of sandalwood, it was one of the best thing's she had smelt in awhile, masculine and sweet. She felt her heart stop for a moment.
"Dont start now." She warn's herself. He smell's good that's all it mean's nothing, she reassured herself. She sat back down in her seat as they began to drive away, her long day didn't feel as long as when the day started. Her finger's graze over the LA Firefighter patch.
A/N HEYYYY ITS ME, HI! So how is everyone feeling, honestly going through this phase where I just wanna skip the semi slow burn and just make the kiss already but im not going to because well that's not my plan. Im sorry for those who clicked and expected me to write something else. Anyway's enjoy and have a good night, drink water.