It has been a couple of hours since Buck and I arrived at work and I am making sure the gifts for the annual Christmas toy drive are good to go. It is proving to be an interesting endeavour as there is a lot to be handed out which means there is going to be a process loading the truck. Something is telling me that Eddie and I are going to be interrupted. Not that it matters so long as it is not one of the Christmas idiots. As soon as the thought crosses my mind the signal bell rings. With that, we get our gear on

"Ella duty calls," Howie remarks as I join him in the ambulance.

"I wonder what it is going to be this time," I remarked as I got comfortable.

"That is a good question that I don't have a good answer to," Howie responds. After five minutes of travel, we made it to the scene to find utter chaos. As a leap out of the ambulance, my eyes land on what can only be described as the worst injured Santa I have ever seen.

"Can you tell me what happened?" I get to work on doing my job.

"It was a last-minute stampede," A distraught woman explains as I get to work. She must think that it is her fault. I'll have to reassure her later. Right now I have a Santa to worry about.

"That explains the concussion," I say.

"Cap, we're gonna need the backboard just in case our Santa has back injuries," I say. A moan can be heard from the Santa's mouth. That is a good sign.

"Can you hear me?" Howie asks.

"Yes but my head feels like it has split into a million pieces," He complains. Well luckily for him he only has a concussion and a few cracked ribs.

"Is he ok?" The woman from before asks.

"Yes he is going to be fine," I beat Howie to reply. The woman seems to relax with that answer. She must have been the one that caused it. After a minute of triple-checking Santa, whose name is Jack, we load him into the ambulance. After ten minutes we are finally back at the firehouse. It seems as if the rest of the crew has gotten into the festive swing.

"You started without us?" Howie remarks as we join them.

"It's not our fault you got stuck with Santa," Buck retorts. It is at that moment that I notice Bobby cooking. As per usual it smells good. Hopefully, nothing will ruin it. I just want it to be quiet so that we can enjoy the food in peace. I am of course not going to say what I am thinking out loud as using the Q word will get me killed for sure. Besides, the only racket I want is when the charity people come to pick up the donations for the toy drive. Speaking of, I glance over the balcony to find a familiar face standing with the volunteers.

"Hey, Bobby the guys from the toy drive are here. I'm going to help them," I leap out of my seat. I hope there are no calls while I do.

"I'm coming as well," Buck remarks. I think he is just using it as an excuse to spend time with his fiance. The thought makes me giggle. After thirty seconds of walking we join Gavin and the others. With a few instructions, we get to work on making sure everything is loaded.

"Hey, Ella. How is it going?" Gavin asks as I pass him the inventory list.

"Surprisingly not busy. We've only had one call today," I skirt around using the Q word. With a few swift movements, Buck and I have the heavy stuff ready for Gavin and his partner. After what feels like an eternity we have everything ready. It is at that moment my nose is hit by the smell of Christmas lunch.

"Hey, are you two staying for lunch?" Bobby calls out from the balcony.

"Sure we might as well. It smells good," Gavin's co-worker responds.

"I'll move the truck out of the way in case you get any calls," Gavin adds as he ducks out. After a minute he is back. We fall into idle chit-chat while we walk to the dining area. Again I am hit by the smell of the food. As soon as I make it to the dining area I sit myself between Buck and Gavin. I am just praying that there are no calls. After what feels like the shortest Christmas meal Gavin and his co-worker leave. It is at that moment the signal bell rings. At least it was kind enough to wait till after Christmas lunch. Since we've been summoned we make a beeline to our respective vehicles.

"118 this is dispatch. I'm giving you a heads up it is a five-alarm fire at an apartment block," My heart sinks. The last five-alarm apartment fire ended with me losing the one person that mattered the most to me.

"Ella, are you alright?" Howie checks on me as he guides the ambulance out of the garage.

"I am fine but the last time I was on call to a five-alarm apartment fire it didn't end well," I responded. It was supposed to be Christmas not the shift from hell. Oh well, there is nothing that I can do. I just need to focus on my job. After the longest five minutes of my life, we made it to the scene. As soon as I lay my eyes on the building I feel the panic setting in. As soon as our boots hit the ground Bobby distributes his orders. As soon as we get started a woman comes running.

"My daughter. She's trapped. She's a type one diabetic. Her apartment is on the third floor," The woman cries. I glance at Bobby.

"Ok. Buck, Ella I want you two to go inside. Eddie, Chim there is a change you need to vent as soon as Buck and Ella are in," Bobby remarks. After a few deep breaths, I get the safety harness on. Despite all of the safety stuff, I am scared. I feel a tug on my wrist.

"Ella you don't have to do this," Buck says as he looks me in the eyes.

"She's going to need a medic. Besides I need to face my fear head-on," I respond as I pull myself free. I know Buck means well but like I said. I need to face my fear head-on. This time I have the chance to save someone with the person I love the most by my side. After a tense minute, the ladder is in place and Buck and I get to work on climbing up. It doesn't take long for us to get to a window.

"LAFD," I call out as soon as my boots make contact with the floor.

"Ov-," The response is cut off by a series of coughing noises. Buck and I follow the noise. We found the girl. She is slumped on the ground. After quickly checking her over I give Buck the go-ahead to help her up. As we head back to the ladder I hear the one noise that I didn't want to hear.

"Buck we need to hurry. The floor is abo-," Before I can finish my sentence I can feel my weight disappear. The next thing I know is the throbbing in my temple. I must have hit my head on the way down. I come around to the chatter on the radio about a firefighter down.

"Ella to the 118 I'm ok. I am going to find the nearest window," I radio in.

"Copy," Bobby acknowledged. With a surge of adrenaline, I am up on my feet. Of course, the pain is unbearable but I have to escape. Luckily for me, I am quick to find the window. There is a catch though. I need to jump if I am to make it.

"Cap, I need the airbag. I can't wait for the ladder," The panic is rising. Deep breath.

"Copy," Again Bobby acknowledges. After a few seconds, the airbag is fully deployed. I hesitate. I need to jump but there is something stopping me. Come on Ella it's the only way down. The others will save you. I close my eyes and leap. The next thing I know I am being embraced by the material of the airbag. With a groan I am pulled up. It has been a couple of hours since then and I am getting checked out by a doctor. Buck is watching over me like a hawk.

"Buck I promise you don't have to worry about me. The checkup is just a precaution. I just have a pounding headache and a bruised ego," I try my best to use humour to alleviate the situation. In all fairness to Buck, seeing me fall is probably not the best for him, especially now that we are getting married at some point. A relieved look crosses the doctor's face.

"You are lucky Miss Calder. The wound is only superficial and there is no evidence of brain injuries," The doctor explains. It has been fifteen minutes since then and since I have been given the all-clear I have returned back to work. Bobby is the first to approach me. He has the trademark look of concern on his face. He is quick to pull me aside.

"How are you doing? You've had a rough day," Bobby gets to work on checking on me.

"I'm fine. Just a little battered," I say, causing Bobby to flash a death glare my way.

"Ok, fine I am in a mental spiral. Ever since Buck proposed I have been thinking of all of the ways that I could lose him and it is a long list," I respond.

"Unfortunately losing people is part of the job. However you need to learn to live in the good moments," Bobby responds. He is right. I have been wrapped up in all of the bad stuff I've forgotten what it is like to live in the good moments. With that Bobby dismisses me. I am quick to take the spot on the couch next to Buck as we settle in to watch this year's Christmas movie. I find myself snuggling up to Buck. A slight smile comes across my face. This is one of the moments that I need to cherish.