‹ Prequel: Stand By Me
Status: Active ♥

Hold My Hand

Nine

Taylor walked into work the next day and shoved her stuff in her locker, before joining the rest of truck in the rec room. She had just poured herself a cup of coffee, when chief Pridgen entered the room and called for everyone’s attention.

“As you all know, chief Boden is out of house this morning and I will be standing in for him,” he said, “Happy Thanksgiving people.”

It wasn’t long before the alarm went off and the firehouse erupted into a flurry of movement, followed by the haunting wails of the sirens. There was always a sense of apprehension as they drove to a scene, a fear of not knowing what kind of situation they were about to step into or whether they’d be able to save everyone weighed heavily on their minds.

“Taylor, Ferguson, Mouch, Otis,” Matt called as soon as they arrived on the scene, “An evacuation has already been done, but I want you to gear up and give the building a full sweep from top to bottom.”

The fire was already raging by the time they entered, moving from door to door and making sure that each apartment was empty. Kicking open the final door of the floor she’d been clearing with Otis, Taylor stepped inside and frowned as she heard shouting coming from outside the open window.

With a quick glance, she was surprised to find a man hanging from the window ledge and immediately grabbed his arm as his fingers began to slip. Any attempt to get him back inside failed, due to the fact that he was obviously scared and so Taylor made a decision.

Severide, I’m going to need squad's help on the east side of the building she stated over the radio, tightening her grip on the man’s arm and reassuring him that help was on its way.

On our way, Taylor came Kelly’s voice a few seconds later.

“I’m slipping,” the man shouted in panic.

“You’re fine,” Taylor reassured, waiting as Kelly appeared around the corner and immediately motioned behind him, “I’ve got you, just stay calm and try not to move.”

“It was me.”

“What was you?”

“I started the fire,” the man confessed, struggling to get free from Taylor’s grip and shouting in frustration when she refused to let go,” I wanted him to suffer...”

“Who?”

“The guy that stole my wife.”

It wasn’t long before the squad rig pulled up and Taylor felt a wave of relief wash over her, letting go of the man’s arm as Capp reached the top of the ladder. The rest of truck were already outside when she returned to the rig, putting away her gear and accepting the bottle of water that Matt handed her.

Once back at the firehouse, she got started on prepping the food for the Thanksgiving dinner and smiled as Kelly joined her. She had just started seasoning the turkey, when Rebecca entered the rec room and sat at the table with Cruz.

“Hey Taylor,” Rebecca stated, drawing Taylor’s attention and continuing, “How come no one uses your last name as they do with everyone else?”

“My last name comes with a lot of baggage,” Taylor answered simply with a shrug.

The alarm ringing cut off any further questions that Rebecca may have had and they jumped on the rig, focusing solely on the job at hand. Nobody could help laughing as they pulled up outside a house, climbing out to find a family and the burnt remains of what Taylor assumed was a turkey on the ground at their feet.

“There was no need for the fire service to be called,” one of the women commented as Matt approached them.

Satisfied that the fire had been fully extinguished, truck loaded back onto the rig and headed back to the firehouse. It was late by the time they all got to sit down to eat, but everyone was just happy to be together and looked up as chief Boden spoke.

“Thanksgiving is a time for all of us to remember the things in life that we have to be thankful for, but today also reminds us of those who can’t be at this table with us,” he said, “So as we eat let’s keep those in mind and thank god that we have someone who knows how to cook... let’s eat.”

With a chuckle, Taylor put some food on her plate and smiled at Kelly as he kissed her cheek. She had just started eating, when a blonde-haired woman appeared in the doorway and she froze.

“Mom.”
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