Hi! Here comes this year story and just a warning now already. It would touch a bit of a harder topic and so to those of you who don't like stories with more serious plot, this story is not probably something you should consider to end reading right here. To those who want to stay, I hope you will consider this story worth it and I hope you will be able to enjoy it ;-)

I patted Venus's mirror thoughtfully. Much had changed in Pontypandy and at our fire station over the years. But I was always glad that Venus had remained the same, unchanged. She was my girl, and just like me, before Ellie joined our team, she had been the only girl in our team of trucks. However, unlike my situation after Ellie joined us, Venus was still the only girl in the team. Although other trucks might have been newer, like Hydrus or Mercury, or much more useful, like Jupiter, Venus had always been my favorite. We all understood that each truck had its own purpose and the tasks it was designed for. The Hydrus, being an amphibious vehicle, could move on both land and water, while Jupiter was a typical fire truck. Powerful and fully equipped, designed for fighting fires as well as for rescues from heights, thanks to its lifting device, it was unmatched on land, in the air, or in the water. Mercury was a vehicle that allowed one of us to move quickly, even to places that were difficult or even inaccessible to his larger colleagues. Phoenix was used relatively rarely, but no other vehicle was as ideal when it was necessary to remove an obstacle from the road or stabilize various vehicles or structures. I don't hide the fact that it was also useful when it was necessary to fish a scene out of the sea. I will not even mention Neptune, Titan, Juno or Wallaby 2 and Fireswift, nor Bessie, which may have been the oldest, but fulfilled an exceptionally important task due to the fact that it was created to move on rails.

However, comparing any of our vehicles to Venus was pointless, because each of them had its own purpose and individual equipment, which made it perfectly prepared to serve us in our work and watch over the safety of our friends in Pontypandy every day.
Venus, on the other hand, had no single purpose, but was designed to be multi-purpose. My girl was exceptionally agile and could move around both on and off-road. Her winch and water cannon made her incredibly useful, even though they didn't give her a single area in which Venus could become our specialist vehicle.

Unfortunately, despite my efforts, it was Jupiter who was always praised and Venus remained in his shadow, just as I had been in Sam's shadow all these years since I moved to Pontypandy. Unfortunately, I couldn't tell whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. Sam was the best of the best at his job and even I couldn't dispute that. But I didn't want to try to be better than him either. I liked the place I had and it didn't bother me that Sam got all the praise. Maybe the situation would be completely different if he was to brag about them, but he was too modest for that and I knew him well enough to know that he feels anything but comfortable when everyone always told him what a great firefighter he was.
His modesty always amused me since I met him. He didn't want fame, he simply enjoyed what he did. Maybe that's why I fell in love with him? Although it took me a long time to realize that I had been treating him as more than just a friend for a long time. I could always count on him and every moment we spent together brought a smile to my face. Sam was different than other men I had ever dealt with. He didn't care about money or fame. Our job was paid quite well, and the amount of overtime Sam worked each year would definitely qualify him for extra pay. However, I knew that he always turned down such an offer, and so did I. We both loved our jobs and we didn't do it for the money.

Personally, I wouldn't trade being a firefighter for any other job. No matter how hard it was for me to get to where I was, every day now brought me satisfaction I never dreamed of before. I found friends who became my family and I always knew I could count on them in good times and bad. Ellie was my best friend, Arnold was my favorite to trade knowledge with, Elvis always made me laugh, Station Officer Steele was my mentor and my biological father's best friend. But it was with Sam that I had the deepest bond. He was the only one who could respect the fact that I didn't want to talk and I had moments when all I needed was silence and solitude. While the former was no problem, he never let me be alone. He was always hanging around, quiet, but I was always aware that he was watching me. When I couldn't stand his protectiveness anymore, I would tease him to make it seem like everything was okay. But Sam could always tell when it was forced and then I had no choice, I had to tell him what was bothering me, no matter how much I didn't want to. His overprotective gaze was even more unbearable than his jokes. I never dreamed of finding a prince in human form. At least not since I became a firefighter. At some point I was even ready to completely sacrifice my dream of finding true love, at least until I met Sam. From my first days in Pontypandy he treated me as an equal. His openness and lack of prejudice against female firefighters seemed false to me at first, but when I got to know him a little better I realized that I had no reason to be afraid. At that point I could no longer resist and the only thing that stops me from talking to him honestly is fear. I'm afraid that telling him will ruin our friendship, and I would never be able to forgive myself for that.

"Are you okay, Penny?" Sam's question tore me from my thoughts. Here it was again, the same concerned look he gave me a moment later as he walked around Venus and stood in front of me.

"Yes. Why do you think not?" I replied, surprised, smiling at him teasingly.

"Today you seem to be..." he replied, but before he could finish, he was interrupted by the alarm.

My gaze met his immediately and we both ran to the coat racks. As I put on my jacket I could still feel Sam's gaze on me, but I ignored my own curiosity and focused on the task at hand. We operated as always, like a well-oiled machine. Without a word I understood from Sam's demeanor that I had to get on Venus. There were only three of us on shift today, so from the empty seat next to me, I realized that Elvis must have gotten on Jupiter with Sam.

I followed them to the train station. Unfortunately, when we arrived, the train was gone. I could hear in Sam's voice that he was starting to feel uncertain when he ordered us to continue on Jupiter and Venus. He must have been counting on us catching up with the train before the viaduct. The chances were slim, but Sam was lucky in situations like this. Although his playing with fate was driving me crazy, because of the fear that sometimes woke me up at night and sometimes kept me awake. I followed them, lagging behind a bit so Jupiter had room to reverse. That was my mistake though. I heard the crack of the winch first. I mentally thanked Arnold for having managed to mount a small launcher on Jupiter's winch, which allowed us to hook the winch hook over short distances without getting out of Jupiter. Of course, if someone had good aim, but I knew Sam had no problem with that. I also saw confirmation when I looked up and saw that Jupiter had successfully caught up with and caught the train. However, both Sam and I had done math without the speed of the locomotive. It was so fast that even Jupiter couldn't effectively counteract it. I saw Sam trying to brake, but he couldn't, and Jupiter was getting closer and closer to the edge.

"Elvis, get out!" I heard Sam's order over the radio.

"What about you, Sam?" Elvis objected.

"Save yourself, Elvis," Sam replied evasively.

If Sam was ready to give up, the situation must have been really bad. After all, he knew Jupiter the best of all of us, so he had to sense when the brakes were failing. You could feel things like that when you got used to the car. I heard the sound of the door opening and saw Elvis manage to stand on the ground as Sam tried to turn Jupiter sideways to the edge of the cliff in the last attempt. He had managed to slow it down like that once, but then he hadn't been dragged into the abyss by the locomotive and its vagon.

"Penny, what are we doing?!" Elvis's scream snapped me out of my shock. I looked at him confused, trying to find my bearings.

"Hoist the winch to Jupiter!" I ordered him when I finally managed to see something in my own thoughts.

"But? Venus is lighter than Jupiter," Elvis reminded me of the obvious, and even in such circumstances I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

"I know, Elvis," I said, trying to be patient. "But I should be able to buy Sam enough time to save himself and maybe we can slow the train down." I explained my idea to him, but I didn't expect anyone else to interrupt me.

"Don't do it, Penny," Sam asked me over the radio. "It's too dangerous."

"Whatever you say," I stated lightly, although I didn't feel like it when I ordered Elvis, "Do it!"

I had gotten close enough in the meantime to be able to reach the winch. Elvis hooked the hook to Jupiter, and I pressed the brake with all my might, mentally pleading for my Venus to hold on. I had been on the edge of a cliff before, sitting in it, but now I knew I had to hold on. I could almost feel Venus shaking with the effort when, out of the corner of my eye I saw Sam manage to get out of Jupiter.

But then everything started to spin out of control. I made the mistake of trying to back up, but the train and Jupiter proved to be too much for Venus' strength. I tried to back up with all my might and just when I thought I was going to crash into Jupiter or let Venus fall into the river, her wheels brushed against something and I was relieved to discover that the brakes were no longer giving way under Jupiter and the train. I smiled to myself when instead of backing up I tried to pull the winch. It shuddered and groaned but managed to back Jupiter up enough to keep him safe, and the train eventually slowed to a stop on the viaduct.

Relieved, I rested my head against the steering wheel and wiped the sweat from my forehead that I hadn't been aware of until that moment. I patted Venus gently when someone else patted my hand through the open window. I looked up and met Sam's eyes.

"Thanks, Penny" Sam smiled at me as his breathing slowly calmed down. "You saved my life."

"Always beside you, Sam" I replied, happily returning his smile.