oh dam

Inside the empty penthouse burst open by Josephine who returned after her morning jog. She removed her mask and toss it to the side along with her keys. Before making her way towards the kitchen, she slipped out of her running shoes. Ever since the widespread of the virus, the penthouse became lonelier than usual due to Alexis residing at a hotel with many medical staff. However, Josephine didn't mind as she continued to work out on the field and would rather not potentially endanger her best friend as well.

After refreshing with a cool sip of water, Josephine headed for the shower to prepare for another day of the abnormal life to which she and the rest of the world have been experiencing in these last several months.

Josephine sat at the countertop once producing an acai bowl and a cup of coffee. She scooped up for a bite when her phone started ringing of an incoming Facetime call from Carlos. She happily accepted the call and propped her phone that unveiled her cousin in his kitchen cooking.

"Good morning, I see we're cooking a big breakfast."

"TK is swinging by for breakfast before shift." He told, laying out two plates for himself and his boyfriend.

"Aren't you two adorable with your daily breakfast gatherings. Wished we weren't in different states because the company would definitely be nice."

Carlos finished prepping their meals on the plates. He glanced up at his phone. "Alexis still living in the hotel?"

"Yeah, kind of been missing her more lately." Josephine slightly frowned, resting her hand against the palm of her cheek and twirling her spoon in the acai bowl. Fortunate to live in a penthouse, sometimes it felt a little too big of a space.

"What about Buck? He doesn't stay over here and there with you?"

"He does but not too long because of Chimney. He's still sleeping on his couch at his apartment. Our alone time is limited."

"Why don't you tell Chimney that you two are together?" Carlos wondered.

"Because Chimney is incapable of keeping a secret and we work with him. We're not exactly prepared to tell the team...yet. Besides, you and Alexis are the only ones that know about us." Josephine shared. Buck has been coming up with excuses to Chimney about his outings which were kind of getting harder. Now that he and Maddie were instigating that he has a secret girlfriend.

They weren't wrong.

"When exactly are you prepared to tell them?"

Josephine raised her brow, "The team or everyone?"

"The latter." TK popped up from behind his boyfriend. He grimaced, "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop."

She suppressed a giggle, greeting him. "Hi TK."

"Morning gorgeous." He winked and blew a kiss at her in which she caught dramatically.

"To answer your question, I'm not sure. And I lied, Buck wants to tell Cap and everyone but I'm not there yet. My life was like a telenovela for the past two years." Josephine rambled to the couple. "Buck is so patient and understanding, so there's no pressure. Although, I think I'm pressuring myself to make our relationship perfect." She groaned at her words that have been eating her.

"I get it. Having a lot of baggage weighing on you can be overwhelming and hesitant to feel comfortable opening up. Something I struggled before coming into a relationship with this guy." TK related to the brunette's dilemma. "What I've learned to keep in mind is that taking our time is okay. Don't forget there are people who can be accepting and have baggage of their own too."

"How romantic of you, babe." Carlos cheekily teased him.

Josephine scoffed at the affection exchanged between the two in front of her. "We get it, you two are cute."

Rolling up into an empty parking space at the lot of the firehouse, Josephine shut off the engine. She gathered her belongings before exiting out of her car. The second she started strolling towards the firehouse, a blond figure appeared by her side brushing their fingers.

"Hi."

"Hey," Buck beamed down at the brunette.

Josephine glanced up, "So, Chimney still adamant about moving back to his apartment?"

"Couch will remain occupied until further notice."

"Hen and Eddie already moved back home. He should be fine."

"That's what I told him. He's taking precaution over my sister's health during this pregnancy which is considerate..."

Josephine halted and confronted him. "But he should be there to support her in person rather than a video call. If I was Maddie being six months pregnant, I would've dragged Chimney back. Sure, she's doing the labor in growing their baby but I'm pretty sure she's a little lonely without him by her side to experience the pregnancy."

Stunned, Buck chuckled as they resumed walking. "Maybe you could get through Chimney."

"The guy is hardheaded. I mean, he survived a rebar that struck through his skull."

Coming to you live, with breaking news. We are here at an incredible scene near 101 in Hollywood. Folks, you are not going to believe this. A Metro bus traveling on the freeway was apparently struck by the debris flow and ended up here. We do not have any word about how many people have been injured or the amount of casualties. It appears that LAFD and LAPD are rushing to the scene.

Elevator music played while the members of the 118 stood surpassing the levels of the building. Buck engrossed with his phone, spoke up. "Oh hey, Hollywood Reservoir is like two and a half billion gallons. Where's all that water gonna go?" He asked curiously.

"My mom survived the dam break in the 60s, Baldwin Hills. Water only ever wants to go in one direction—out to sea." Hen theorized as the elevator came to a stop.

The doors unveiled the destruction of a transit bus inside the conference room.

Bobby and Hen went to step out to work on the scene with Chimney falling behind them. "This is definitely our stop." He commented, leaving Josephine, Eddie, and Buck remaining in the elevator.

Eddie peered at Buck. "Hey, at least it's not a tsunami, right?" He remarked causing Buck and Josephine to shoot him a glare as the doors closed.

Up on the roof, the trio prepared for their roles in the plan. Both Josephine and Buck attached themselves to a line where they'll be going down to secure the bus safely from the outside. Eddie finished hooking up the machine.

"This is Diaz, be advised. Buck and Josie are about to touch down. Once they're there, I'll send the webbing to secure the bus." He notified the team working inside the building.

Josephine clipped the line to her belt then lifted her gaze to find Buck's eyes already locking onto hers. He tugged a small grin and held out a fist. "Ready to go, Santiago?"

She held in a laugh and bumped her fist against his. "Been ready, Buckley." She winked at him.

The duo dropped down with caution on top of the bus one at a time. Sighing in relief, they scanned around the bus.

"Okay, we've landed. Not too bad. We should be able to get this thing stable." Josephine said on the line.

Buck radioed in after sniffing around, "Got some good news, Cap. The automatic exfil is working on the natural gas tanks up here. At least we know this thing is not going to explode."

"At least we got that going for us." The brunette mumbled. Eddie sent down the hooks to the duo where they began placing underneath the bus.

"Guys, where we at?" Bobby called in.

Josephine chimed in, "Done with the first tight end point."

"Second tight end point is secured. Heading for the middle." Buck added before moving his body to another section of the bus. "Second hook is in, Cap."

Eddie interjected, "We're secured up here."

Everything seemed to go according to plan until Buck made a discovery of a civilian trapped underneath the bus. After Chimney was able to find a pulse of the young man, the 118 found themselves in a bigger dilemma to figure out how to save the people on the bus along with the man underneath. Despite the security of the bus pinned to the side of the building, they weren't sure how long time will be their friend.

"Ah, no! Still too many beams. Too much bus. Can't even get a backboard under there." Buck rose on his feet with the backboard after the failed attempt to slide it under the young man.

"Probably a fractured pelvis. Pulse and BP aren't great, but he's holding up." Chimney announced from under the bus, doing a protocol checkup.

"Oh my God, Keith!" A young woman wearing a sling appeared around the bus.

Josephine stopped her, "Ma'am, I'm going to need you to stand back." She ordered politely.

Upon hearing the sound of her voice, the young man called out to his colleague. They ignored the firefighters where Keith confessed his wrongdoings in their work.

Chimney interrupted the two, "Maybe you guys can have a sidebar after we get the 30,000-pound teeter-totter off of you, okay?"

"That's it. It's a seesaw." Bobby stated, sparking an idea in his head. Finalizing their new plan to save, Bobby called Eddie on the radio. "We need the bus to drop backwards a little bit so the front end lifts up so we can get to Keith."

"Cap, the bus is already secured to the building. It's stable."

"I know. But I need it to move. Let's put it on the heavy winch." Bobby told as he circled around to the entrance of the bus where Josephine, Hen, Buck, and Chimney gathered for further instructions. "Meantime, we get everyone off the bus, we let it rock back, and then, we pull Keith out from underneath."

Once the doors opened, the team rushed inside. "All right, gentlemen and lady. Welcome to triage." Hen directed at the brunette. She began entailing the state of the scene, "My girl, Vanessa, here probably has a dislocated shoulder, but check for a break, splint, and bind her arm to her chest. Zeke here has a femoral bleed. It needs a torniquet. Run a line. Run it wide open."

Working at a fast pace, the team managed to transport the two civilians with major injuries before hauling the rest off the bus. Chimney and Buck were able to relieve Keith from the bottom of the bus after Eddie used the heavy winch to tilt the bus for space. Bobby saved a reluctant young man after an explosion occurred on the bus.

However, their day wasn't over yet when an earthquake struck hitting half of the Hollywood sign and residences on the hill.

At the hill where the water from the dam flooded and created mudslides. Part of the hill was brought down. Bobby and Hen stood with the Incident Commander updating the state of the disaster.

"Most of the damage is concentrated east of the dam. Exposed gas lines unstable structures, and mud. Lots of it."

"Any casualties?" Bobby inquired.

"Two tagged so far, but there's bound to be more. LAPD was evacuating residents when the hill came down. Might not have gotten them all out in time."

"Have any officers checked in with Mobile Command?"

The Incident Commander shook her head, "Not that I've seen, but it's still golden hour."

"It's our best chance to find survivors. After that..."

"It becomes a recovery operation." She concluded.

Josephine joined the trio with the others coming up. "Should we be worried about more of that hill coming down?" She gestured over her shoulder.

"Yeah, we work quick, we work safe, we hope for the best. Where do you want us?" Bobby darted at the Incident Commander.

"The Hollywood sign." She pointed where the first half of the sign has disappeared.

Buck contorted a confused expression. "Where's the rest of it?"

"Downhill. About where the H landed just west of here. There were some hikers in the area."

Chimney being himself thought to humor the group. "Guess they should have bought a vowel."

"Okay, Hen, Josie, you're with me at the sign. Chimney, Buck, Eddie, you stay here and help search for survivors." Bobby instructed the team before they began to dispersed.

Bobby led the group hiking up to the Hollywood sign. As much as Josephine loved to go on a hike, this wasn't the typical normal one wearing her turnout gear and using a shovel to carry herself up the hill.

"It's four stories tall. Shouldn't we be able to see it by now, Cap?" Hen asked him.

"Maybe it landed further west." Josephine guessed.

"This isn't the first time the Hollywood sign has fallen." Bobby intrigued the women who shared a pointed look. "Legend has it, back in the day, a groundskeeper got drunk and crashed his car into it. Knocked down the H."

"And how do you know that?" Hen interrogated.

"When I first moved here, I wanted to know more about the area I took one of those tours. It was very informative."

"Help! Help!"

The trio stopped as their eyes casted towards a young man and woman clinging onto the ladder of the tilted H sign.

"I'm stuck!"

They discovered a second voice of another young man trapped in the mudslide.

"Stay right where you are LAFD. We'll come to you."

Josephine nudged Bobby. "That mud's too thick. We need plywood."

"Dispatch, this is Captain Nash, 118. We are in the hills west of Mobile Command working on the mudslide. We need a supply drop of plywood ASAP."

"Copy that, Captain. Do you have a landmark for the pilots?"

"Uh, yeah."

More firefighters traveled their way to them with a number of plywood to pave a way for the firefighters to come to the three civilians.

"Don't move. That mud is liquid. It'll suck you right in."

The young man the mud let out a scoff, "Yeah, tell me about it."

"Okay, try to relax. What's your name?" Hen told him while working on him.

"Dylan."

"Okay, Dylan, everything's gonna be fine. We're gonna get you outta here." She told him before turning to Bobby. "BP's slightly elevated, and his breathing's a little shallow."

"Is that normal?" The young woman asked merely becoming worried.

"Given the situation, yes. But not ideal." Hen answered truthfully.

"All right, that mud has probably started to restrict his lungs." Bobby announced.

Dylan started to panic, "My God. I'm gonna die."

"You're not gonna die." Josephine shoveled around him.

He ignored her, proceeding to go on a frantic rant. "I should have known. I should've never taken this trip. 2020 has been a dumpster fire. Why should this be any different?"

"You're acting like I forced you to come. I was just trying to be nice and include you." His friend scowled.

The young woman informed the firefighters.
"We're roommates."

"No, me and Caleb are roommates. You came over for dinner and never left." Dylan clarified, sending a glare.

"Okay, stop moving. Every time you do, that mud is gonna pull you in deeper. Stay still and keep your hands above the surface." Bobby said in a firm tone.

"I just feel like I'm gonna drown."

"You can't drown in quicksand. Human body's too dense." Josephine assured him.

"But the more you struggle—" Bobby tried to tell the consequences of his actions but had been cut off by Dylan's screaming.

"I'm stuck! And-and sinking!"

Caleb grown annoyed, "Can't we just pull him out?" He suggested.

"Not unless you wanna rip him in half." Josephine deadpanned.

"We need to put something in there to support him. You think the pipe poles would work?" Hen wondered, looking at Bobby.

"No, too short." Bobby said until he eyed at the fallen sign. "The H. Maybe we can use some of that."

"Let's do it."

Josephine and Bobby stalked away to saw off the ladder from the H leaving Hen with the three young adults. What she didn't anticipate was a sudden love confession.

"Cap, you wanna hurry that up, please?" Hen practically begged to escape from this awkward conversation.

"Okay, I can't breathe."

Bobby and Josie carried the metal ladder. "We gotta move fast. Pressure from his mud is gonna collapse his lungs." They installed it behind Dylan who squirmed in the mud.

"Stop moving around, you're only going to make things worse." Josephine said, continuing to dig the ladder further into the mud.

"I love you too, Dylan!" The young woman yelled out anxiously. Everyone on the site found themselves quite shocked and uncomfortable.

"What?"

She ignored her boyfriend, keeping her eyes on Dylan. "So, you stay still. Don't give up. Live. For me."

"Okay, Dylan, I need you to lean back as far as you can like you're sitting on a chair. That is gonna distribute your weight more evenly. Move slowly. Your leg should start to rise." Bobby explained thoroughly. "Now just lean back. Get a little leverage."

Dylan relaxed feeling his body rise from the mud. "I'm gonna live."

"And then I'm gonna kill you." Caleb glowered at his roommate.

The roommates were talking out what could be the most awkward conversation to the side after the rescue. While the three firefighters were waiting to wave down the incoming helicopter.

"Knowing that they have to go home together, yikes." Josephine whispered to Hen as they glanced back at the trio.

Hen turned back to her, "Probably wouldn't have agreed to live with two guys."

The sound of the helicopter steered their attention. Josephine went forward to wave them down.

"Okay, here's your ride."

As the two young men went ahead, the young woman stopped by Hen asking if there was another ride she wait for.

"2020 is a dumpster fire."

"No, you and abuelo don't need to worry about me. Shift was rough but I am fine." Josephine ran fingers through her hair, nodding along. "Yes, I'll come by the house later this week. I promise."

Josephine sat alone on her couch speaking on the phone with her concerned abuela. After working through another eventful day in the city, she had exchanged phone calls with her family.

Her lips curved into a smile at the sound of her loving abuela's voice. "Love you too. Bye." She spoke those last few words and hung up.

She continued to scroll through the guide to put either a series or movie to watch when a ripple of knocks pounded on her door.

"Hi, I didn't know you were coming over."

A surprised expression spread on her face after finding Buck standing behind the door. She moved to the side and widened the door to invite him inside.

"Well, I wanted to spend time with you after a hectic shift."

Buck pulled Josephine to his body where she slung her arms around his neck for a blissful kiss.

Josephine pressed one more upon his lips before tilting her head at him. "Now what excuse did you give Chim this time and how long will I have you for?"

"For one, you don't need to worry about him because he moved back home. He and Albert did a switcheroo." His hands grazed her sides slowly.

"Okay, what did you tell Albert then?"

He contorted a sheepish grin, "Might've told him we're together..." He trailed off as he watched his girlfriend's eyebrow arched. "I should get a pass since Carlos and his boyfriend TK know about us. We can trust Albert because he can keep secrets. Plus, he wouldn't want to disappoint your beautiful face."

She blew through her lips, resting her hands on his shoulders, "Albert doesn't work with us, so, that's fine. Does that mean you're staying the night?"

"If you don't mind."

Josephine matched his smirk then leaned in to kiss him. "Not." She kissed him again. "At." And again. "All."

The couple laid together on the couch after finishing their delivered takeout scattered on the coffee table. They were watching a movie, well, except Josephine whose attention wasn't entirely there. It didn't go unnoticed to Buck.

"What's going on in that pretty head of yours?"

He kissed her shoulder.

Her fingers grazed his fingers that secured her stomach. She looked up at him. "You still don't mind that we're keeping us a secret, right?"

Without missing a beat, he nodded. "Of course, I want you to feel comfortable when you're ready to tell everyone. I know there's pressure because we work together—under the same firehouse." He paused, eliciting a smug grin. "And these last few months sneaking around has been kind of hot."

He received an eye roll from the brunette.

"I might be the most impulsive person, but I'll be the most patient one when it comes to you."

Josephine relaxed her eyes while he placed a sweet kiss on her temple.

-Pushed myself to draft this chapter. Welcome to season 4! Can't wait to dive into more bits and pieces of Josie and Buck's relationship!Hope you like it! Tell me what you think! Don't forget to vote and comment! Stay tuned!-

WRITTEN: 3/17/23

PUBLISHED: 3/17/23