Page 71 of Controlled Burn

“I don’t know, better because it’s real. Or maybe better because it’s happening to me. Like he’s everything I ever wanted, but more, you know.”

“We’re happy for you, Caleb.” Livy reached over and gave me a hug.

“I just wish my dad was half as happy about it as you guys are.”

“He isn’t?” Ezra looked puzzled. “I mean, I thought Keith was like his best friend. You would think he would be thrilled.”

“I don’t think he believes Keith is serious about us. He went on and on about how Keith said he would never settle down.”

“What do you think? Do you think he’s serious?” Toby asked.

I nodded. “Yeah, I really do.”

Keith

It had been a busy day, but shifts around holidays always were, especially this one. Personally, I thought people should leave fireworks to the professionals, but what did I know? I was just the guy who had to come put it out when the bottle rockets caught the roof of your shed on fire.

Thankfully, things had quieted down. Not that I would ever say that out loud, and if anyone else dared, I’d stick them in a closet and lock the door. Firefighters were a superstitious lot, and that was a big one. You never ever commented on a lack of calls unless you wanted to run your ass off the rest of the shift.

I was kicked back with a book, and everyone else was chilling, playing video games or playing cards, when Ford plopped down on the sofa beside me.

“It was great seeing you and Caleb the other night.”

“Yeah, he had fun.” I put my book down in my lap because I knew he had something else to say.

“You’re really thinking about settling down.” It was a statement, but he said it like a question.

“Yeah, I really am. You should give it a shot.”

“Nah, I missed my shot at forever, so now I’m doomed to walk alone. Lucky for me, that doesn’t mean I have to sleep that way.”

“Dude, you’re what? Thirty? I’m pretty sure you aren’t doomed to do anything at this point.”

Just then, the tones went off, and we stopped to listen to the PA system.

Structure Fire, 1201 Crocket. Cross streets Crocket and 12th Street. Engine 113, Ambulance 73.

“I’m pretty sure I’m doomed to not get any damn sleep tonight,” he grumbled as we all hopped to and rushed out to the trucks.

I debated if I should send a text to Caleb and let him know I was going out on a call. I knew there would be times when I wouldn’t have a chance to tell him, but I had plenty of time on the ride over on this call. The problem was he was with his friends, and I didn’t want to worry him when he was out having fun. He did specifically tell me he would rather know, so, in the end, I decided it was best to at least send him a text.

Me: Hey Rabbit. We are headed out on another call. Like I told you, this is always a busy week.

Rabbit: Be safe.

Me: I’ll try. It’s probably just a firework mishap. I’ll let you know when we head back.

Rabbit: Sounds good.

I put my phone away and focused on getting in the right head space for whatever we were about to walk into. Unfortunately, this wasn’t a simple fireworks mishap at all. Instead, it was a kitchen fire in an elderly woman’s house. It looked like maybe she’d put something on to cook and then drifted off to sleep with the burner on.

The small little wood-framed house was pretty much a total loss by the time we got the fire under control, but thankfully, the woman was safe because she woke up when the smoke detector went off, and she followed the dispatcher’s instructions to go outside and stay there while she waited for us.

The ambulance crew had tended to her while we did the best we could to save her home, but we’d all known it was a lost cause when we pulled up. Once the fire was in the rafters, there wasn’t a lot that could be done to save the structure. We’d verified with her that there weren’t any other people or animals in the house, and then we just did what we could to put it out and to keep it from spreading.

When we’d accomplished that, I saw her sitting patiently in one of her lawn chairs, watching us. She looked familiar to me, but I wasn’t sure where I knew her from. Of course, I grew up here, so it could have been from any number of places. Still, I walked over to say hi and make sure she had someone coming to pick her up.

I stepped up to her and pulled off my helmet and gloves. When she saw my face, she smiled up at me. “Oh, I know you. We met at the library book sale. You’re that nice librarian… what’s his name? Oh yes, Caleb, you’re his boyfriend, aren’t you?”