The bar near her hotel was busy for a Sunday night.

Rock music from the 80s played through the speakers situated around the bar, loud enough to hear from any position in the room while still being quiet enough for patrons to have conversations with each other without having to shout.

Sloane Hart sat alone at the bar, an untouched gin and tonic positioned between her hands, manicured fingernails tapping against the side of the glass in rhythm with the song that was currently playing. Her eyes watched the bartender, a pretty-looking blonde in shorts her pervy manager probably made her wear, make drinks without stopping, taking the orders shouted at her across the counter with ease. If she was overwhelmed, she did not look it. Sloane knew that masking well.

Tomorrow would be just the beginning of her fresh start: an interview for a new fire station in Los Angeles. No more cold, snowy nights in Boston; instead swapped for the warm, sunny days the West Coast brought. A new job and a brand new crew were just a night and an interview away.

Successful interview, she reminded herself in her head. Her gaze dropped to the glass in front of her again, the sight of the bubbling clear liquid making her mouth feel dry. She swallowed harshly as she picked up the baiting glass, moving it closer to her lips.

"Drinking alone?"

Sloane immediately put down the glass at the interruption before she could take a sip, turning her head to find the source of the voice behind her. He was young, likely in his mid-20s like she was, with short dirty blond hair styled back with gel. She noticed a small pink spot above his left eyebrow, a birthmark she realized, but his eyes were the most captivating part of him. Light blue, similar to the clear skies she had been greeted with when she landed that morning. Welcome to Los Angeles.

"Not really drinking," Sloane responded, gesturing to her untouched drink in front of her, his gaze following the movement before returning to her face. He smiled, and the corners of his eyes crinkled with the expression, causing her lips to twitch up in return, unable to pull her own eyes away from him. "You chatting up lonely girls at the bar alone?"

"Well, I'm not really alone anymore," he corrected, taking a seat on the empty stool that had opened up beside Sloane, the older man sitting there having huffed something about "kids" before he left. Sloane's eyes followed blue-eyes as he sat down, briefly flitting downwards to assess his outfit. He wore a form-fitting black t-shirt which accentuated his very well-trimmed figure, and a pair of dark blue jeans. When she met his eyes again, he was staring at her with a smirk before he very obviously began to check her out in return, almost as if he were teasing her for getting caught. "So, new to the area? Because there's no way I wouldn't have noticed you before."

"Oh, that is disgustingly corny; I should tell you to hit the road," Sloane said with a faux look of disappointment on her face, rolling her eyes at the horrible pick-up line. He laughed as she turned to face forward, ignoring his attempts to gain her attention again with a smile. "Yeah, I just moved here. Well, plan to, as long as my interview goes well."

"Yeah, well, maybe I can help you practice for it, then."

Sloane had never considered herself to be someone to partake in casual hook-ups, but the moment she met his gaze again, she felt an unfamiliar feeling spark in the lower abdomen, almost insatiable even without the presence of any alcohol in her system.

She had struggled to swipe her keycard across the sensor lock when they got back to her hotel as he crowded her up against the door, his hot mouth pressing to the column of her throat as she turned her head away from him to try and visualize her flailing hand.

Finally, she heard the click of the lock and pushed down on the handle, almost falling backwards as the door swung open. The man kept her upright by wrapping his arms securely around her waist, their legs tangling together as he stepped forward, the two of them stumbling into the dark room as he trailed his lips back up to hers, pulling her bottom lip in between his teeth as she tossed her purse blindly onto the floor.

As soon as the door clicked closed behind them, his arms unravelled from around her, and his hands began to explore more of her body as he licked into her mouth, swallowing the moan that he received in response to his actions. She tugged on the bottom of his t-shirt, wanting to get rid of the fabric separating their skin, and he was quick to oblige to the silent request. He pulled away and grabbed at the collar of his shift, pulling it off in one swift motion while Sloane took that moment to start unbuttoning the front of her blouse, fingers working quickly down her front. She pulled it off her body just as her lips were slotted against his again, their feet moving them further into the room.

"You're clean, right?" he had pulled away to ask as the back of her knees hit the edge of the bed, his hot breath fanning across her face as she looked at him with some confusion, pushing him to clarify his question. "Like, nothing to worry about down there?"

"No, I don't have any STDs," Sloane scoffed, finally understanding what he was asking her as her shoulders heaved with a sigh, brow furrowing as her mind finally caught up to everything that was happening. He seemed to notice her sudden lapse in enthusiasm and ducked his head to try and meet her now downcast eyes.

"You sure you want to do this?"

Sloane looked up at him, meeting his softened blue-eyed gaze, genuine concern present in them. She nodded, sending him a reassuring smile as she reached behind herself to unclasp her bra, the straps falling off her shoulders before she fully dropped the garment onto the floor.

"I'm sure."

He grinned at her response, surging forward to meet her lips again as they toppled onto the mattress.

⸻

The other side of the bed was cold when Sloane woke up in the morning. The sheets had been pulled back into place, and if she had been drunk, she probably would have convinced herself she had made the whole rendezvous up. But, between being completely sober and the slight ache between her legs, she could remember every detail of last night.

Rolling over to check her phone, she blinked a couple of times to clear the usual morning blurriness before almost falling out of bed with a shout, noticing the time on the top of her phone screen.

She rushed into the bathroom, grabbing a cloth from the nearby towel rack to quickly wipe down her body, not having enough time to hop into the shower. That, paired with a generous amount of her perfume, would have to suffice. She ran her fingers through her hair to tame the dark curly pieces down as she gathered up essential pieces of her makeup, tossing them on the bed before opening up her suitcase and pulling the closest pieces of professional-looking clothing out.

She settled on a flowy black blouse and beige dress pants, pairing them with black flats. She quickly glanced in the mirror after dressing, happy enough with her appearance, before she moved to grab her phone off the nightstand, which was near-dead, and rushed to locate her purse near the doorway. She ordered an Uber while shoving everything she needed into her bag, releasing an audible sigh of relief to see her driver close by on the phone screen.

Racing down to the hotel lobby, she spotted her Uber just as it pulled up to the front door. Sloane gave her name as she climbed into the vehicle, asking as politely as she could manage if the driver could step on it. He did so, getting her to the LAFD headquarters with just enough time to spare. She thanked him profusely, having just finished her makeup in the backseat, ensuring she quickly tipped him on her phone with a 5-star rating as she exited the vehicle.

After being directed by the woman at the front desk on where to go and being given a visitor pass, Sloane made her way to the interview room, practically crashing through the door as the clock reached the top of the hour.

Three sets of eyes immediately moved in her direction at the sudden and loud intrusion from across the room. She stood straight, trying to slow her breathing as she forced a smile towards her interviewers, two men in dress uniforms and a woman in typical business casual attire.

"That LA traffic is something else," Sloane lied through her teeth, earning a nod of understanding and a smile from the taller man. The shorter of the two approached her, holding his hand out in her direction. Sloane quickly took it and shook it firmly before dropping her hand back to her side. "Chief Alonzo, right? It's a pleasure to meet you in person. Thank you for this opportunity."

"Your former Captain had nothing but great things to say about you. The pleasure is all mine," the Chief responded, gesturing toward the other two people in the room. "This is Captain Nash. He runs Station 118, which is the firehouse you'll be interviewing for. And this is Marianne, she is our HR manager."

Sloane greeted the other two, walking across the room to introduce herself and shake their hands.

"Well, let's get started, shall we?" Chief Alonzo proposed once introductions had finished, earning an eager nod from Sloane, who sat in the free seat at the end of the table.

Any nerves she felt before suddenly dispersed as she began to talk about the career she loved.

♯ AUTHOR'S NOTE !

i wonder who that mysterious blue-eyed man with a birthmark could be... i haven't the slightest clue! tbh i just needed sloane to get laid first thing before i put her through a bunch of trauma for my own entertainment.

she's stronger than me though i would've jumped him in the bar bathroom the moment i laid eyes on him (in a way that is least concerning to lesbianism of course). hope you all enjoyed this hot mess and i'll see you in the next chapter!!