Marco walked into the locker room just in time to hear Chet begin his daily ritual of teasing Johnny.
"Phew! What is that smell?" He sniffs around, then looks at Gage. "Oh, it's Gage's new cologne-'Eau de Sweatsocks.' Who are you trying to attract with that one, Gage? Besides the flies, that is."
"Ha, ha, ha. Very funny. You obviously neglected to read the memo board again, didn't you, Chet? It so happens, that Chief Anders will be here this afternoon with the photographer who is choosing the models for next year's LA County Firefighters Calendar. I plan on making a good impression with a certain Miss Leslie Thomlinson."
Chet snorted. "Yeah, right, Gage. The only impression you're likely to make is in the floor, when you fall flat on your face."
"Yeah, well Henry would have a better chance than you of getting in the calendar. At least, he's got some personality."
The two men walked out, still sniping at one another. Roy and Marco exchanged glances, and rolled their eyes. Those two would never change.
It was getting close to lunch time when Chief Anders arrived. Marco was at the oven, turning over the chicken that was the main lunch entree.
"Good morning, gentlemen. Umm, something smells good."
"Lemon chicken, Chief," Cap replied. "Care to join us for lunch?"
"Don't mind if I do, Hank. We've been running around so much this morning, I haven't even had time for a cup of coffee." He sat down at the table, while Marco poured him a cup, and handed it to him. "Thanks, Lopez."
Marco nodded, then hid a smile as John ran a comb through his hair one more time, and checked out the door. "So, Chief, where is the photographer?"
"Leslie should be along in just a minute. Now, I hope the department can count on you, should any of you be chosen. All the proceeds from the calendar will go to the Firefighter's Benefits Guild, so it's for a worthy cause."
Captain Stanley smiled. "Oh, I don't think you have to worry about that, Chief. These guys will be falling at Miss Thomlinson's feet for a chance to be in the calendar."
Chief Anders looked puzzled for a moment, then his eyes lit with amusement. "Miss Thomlinson? I guess I should have mentioned that..."
He was interupted when a slender man in his mid-forties came rushing into the room. "So sorry, gentleman, but you wouldn't believe the traffic out there this time of day."
"Gentlemen, I'd like to introduce our photographer for next year's calendar, Mr. Leslie Thomlinson." the Chief said.
Chet snickered under his breath, while Chief Anders introduced Mr. Thomlinson around. Time enough to rag Johnny later, after the Chief left. Boy, was this gonna be fun!
Marco was heaping the chicken onto a platter, as Roy set the table. Captain Stanley got a cup of coffee for their guest. Talk of the calendar was pushed to the side for the moment, as lunch took priority. All firefighters know you eat when you can, because you never knew when a call was going to come in.
Thankfully, the tones stayed silent, and the guys were able to clean up and relax with another cup of coffee, while Leslie took some candid snapshots of each of the men.
"So, I'm curious, Mr. Thomlinson," Chet remarked. "How will you decide who gets chosen for the calendar?"
"Oh, I'm not the only one who will be making this decision. My staff will be involved, too. Together, the five of us will go over all the shots that I've been taking on my visits to the different stations. Each team member will give points for each subject, which will then be added all together. When we have a working list, we'll scrutinize the ones with the top 30 or so highest points, and go from there. I believe we only have one more station to stop at, am I right, Chief Anders?" The Chief nods. "So, we'll probably begin the process next week sometime. Once we get moving, it'll probably take us about a month to decide on the final choices."
"What happens once you decide?" Captain Stanley asked.
"Then we'll contact our choices, and obtain their consent. Then we'll schedule the days we'll be taking the photos. We'll have some shots that we'll pose, probably in our studios. We'll also be trying to get some candid shots, while the subjects are actually on duty."
"On duty?" Cap asked. "How do you plan to do that? It could be dangerous."
Chief Anders was quick to jump in. "We've already discussed that, Hank. Both Mr. Thomlinson, and the other photographer, Lucy Morales, will follow strict rules so that they don't put themselves, or anyone else, in harm's way. Once we have a confirmed list, we'll be speaking to the subjects, and to their captains to insure everyone's safety."
The Chief stood up and grabbed his hat. "Gentleman, thank you for lunch, it was delicious. Mr. Thomlinson, we should get going if we want to finish at Station 17 before dinner." As soon as the photographer and Chief Anders were out of range, Chet pounced.
"Gee, Johnny," he said in a falsetto voice and batting his eyelashes. "Do you think Miss Thomlinson liked you?"
"Can it, Chester." Johnny said as he headed out into the bay.
**********
Several days later, the men of A shift had just returned from a house fire and were in the bay cleaning the trucks, when Captain Stanley came in. "Marco, can I see you in my office, please?"
Marco looked up. "Sure, Cap. Be right there." He gave the bumper one last swipe as Johnny walked over to him.
"What are you in trouble for, do you think?"
"I don't know. I don't remember anything that he'd need to call me in for. Guess there's only one way to find out, huh?" He headed towards Cap's office. The door was open, but he still stayed in the hall and knocked. Captain Stanley looked up and motioned him inside. "Marco, come in. Close the door and have a seat."
Marco did as requested, sitting up as straight as could be. "Is...is something wrong, Cap?"
Captain Stanley smiled. "No, nothing's wrong. As a matter of fact, it's good news. I just got a call from Chief Anders. It seems that you have been selected to represent Station 51 in the Firefighters Calendar. Congratulations."
Marco's mouth dropped open. "Me? Are you sure, Cap?"
Cap smiled. "Positive. Chief Anders just got the list this morning. So, what do you think?"
"Uh...I'm stunned. I figured Johnny would be chosen, or Mike. I'm not sure what to say. Wow, it's really something."
"Do you think you'll accept?"
That jerked Marco from his stupor. "What? Oh, yeah, yeah. I'll do it. Heck, it might be fun."
Cap laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. "You'll probably get a kick out of it. And think of how jealous Johnny's gonna be. Anyway, here is Mr. Thomlinson's number. Go on and give him a call. Tell him your decision and he'll get things started. You can use the phone in here." He started out the door, then stopped. "Do you want to tell the guys, or should I?"
"You go ahead, Cap."
Cap smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that." He walked out towards the bay.
Marco shook his head as he rounded the desk. He picked up the phone and dialed the number he'd been given. It was answered on the third ring by a woman with a lovely, lilting voice. "L & L Productions. Can I help you?"
"Mr. Thomlinson, please."
"Certainly, sir, can you hold on a moment?"
"Yes." Marco heard a click as he was put on hold. Moments latter, the phone was picked up.
"This is Thomlinson."
"Mr. Thomlinson, this is Marco Lopez, from fire station 51."
"Ah, yes, Mr. Lopez. It's good to hear from you. I assume you've been contacted by Chief Anders?"
"Yes, I've been told. And I'd be honored to be in the calendar. Thank you for choosing me."
"Wonderful. You scored very high in the points. Let me check my book here real quick. You're off tomorrow, right?"
"Yes."
"Could you be at my studio at about one o'clock? You can meet everyone, and get the releases signed. Then we can go over a schedule."
"Yes, I can be there," Marco replied. He wrote down the directions to the studio, and said goodbye. Heading out through the bay and into the kitchen, he could already hear Chet razzing Johnny. But they all quieted down when Marco walked in. Mike came over and held out a hand.
"Congratulations, Marco. Thank God someone else was picked instead of me!" Marco shook his hand, knowing the Mike hadn't been thrilled with the idea of posing for a calendar. He was uncomfortable with the thought of being followed around by a photographer. Marco felt a slight twinge at that thought, but decided he could handle it for a day or two.
"Yeah, Marco. Sounds like it's going to be fun." Roy told him. "Wait til Joanne hears."
"Well, we'll see. I have to go over there tomorrow."
Johnny looked up at Marco. He had to admit that he was a bit jealous, but also happy for Marco. But he was getting a little tired of Kelly making such a big thing of it. You'd think it had been a competition between just Marco and John. At least 51 was going to be represented. And Johnny figured Marco deserved the recognition.
"So, Gage, what happened?" Kelly asked, taking the seat next to him, still trying to get on Johnny's last nerve. "The ol' Gage charm not working anymore?"
"Well, Chet, I guess they just decided to go for the mustachioed look, and of course, I don't wear a caterpillar on MY lip." He looked over at Kelly, rubbing his fingers across his upper lip. "What's your excuse?" he asked, innocently.
"Excuse..." Chet sputtered, "I don't need an excuse. I didn't want to be in that stupid calendar anyway."
"Yeah, right, Chet," Johnny replied, as the others laughed. "Is that why you bugged the Cap at least a dozen times a day, wondering if the Chief had called?"
"I did not. Did I, Cap?"
"No, Johnny, Chet's right. He didn't bug me a dozen times a day."
"There,see, I told you," Chet said, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms across his chest, thankful to have been vindicated.
"Yeah, John, it was only eleven times a day, not twelve," Cap remarked, with a straight face, as he walked from the room, slapping Marco on the back as he went.
The others burst out laughing again. Johnny made it a point to congratulate Marco. It was cool that one of their crew was going to be in the calendar, and he was just glad it wasn't gonna be Chet. They would have never heard the end of that one.
Marco just accepted the congrats, and went about getting dinner ready.
***********
Johnny had just turned off his truck when he saw the little red convertible pull into the lot. When the driver parked and got out of the car, Johnny whistled softly under his breath. 'Man,' he thought, 'what a beauty.' The woman was slim, petite, maybe 5'2" or so. Long, black hair was woven into a thick braid that hung down her back. Her faded jeans clung to her form quite nicely. Johnny was about to see if he could help her, when Marco came out of the station house.
"Lucy, buenos dias. Did you have any problems finding the place?" Marco asked her.
"Good morning. Not one. Your directions were very good." Johnny thought her voice suited her, soft and lilting with just a hint of an accent.
"Do you need any help getting your equipment in?" Marco was studiously ignoring the fact that Johnny was behind the woman, motioning for an introduction.
"Well, why don't you show me around and introduce me to everyone. Then I can figure out how I want to handle this. We'll get my equipment out then."
"Okay. We need to get you a jacket and helmet, too. Captain's orders. You have to wear them if you go out on a call with us."
"I understand. Why don't we go see your captain first, so I can get my lists of 'dos and don'ts' for today." Behind her, Johnny was clearing his throat, trying to gain someone's attention for an introduction. Marco rolled his eyes. With a sigh, he finally obliged.
"Lucy, this nut behind you is John Gage, one of our paramedics. John, Lucy Morales. She's the photographer for the Firefighters calendar."
Johnny held out his hand. "Pleased to meet you, Lucy." Johnny beamed his brightest smile at her.
She cocked her head and smiled back politely. Shaking his hand, she said, "Likewise." Then she turned back to Marco. "Shall we?"
Marco held out an arm, which she accepted. Leaving Johnny standing in the parking lot, they headed into the station.
**********
The day was unusually quiet for Station 51 that day. True to her word, Lucy was unobtrusive in her actions, so that even Mike had relaxed enough to smile for her pictures. She posed Marco for several shots in the bay, standing next to the engine. Johnny had since given up. Even though she was unfailingly polite and friendly, it was clear she wasn't interested. At least, not in Johnny. Marco, it seemed, was another story. The two of them had been sharing jokes and stories all day. She had even pitched in during lunch preparations, delighting the crew with homemade enchiladas that melted in their mouths. Chet's mouth was so busy eating, the meal actually passed without him harassing Johnny. Much.
Mike had just finished up the last of the lunch dishes when the tones sounded through the bay.
"Squad 51, Engine 51, Engine 18, Engine 10, Squad 18. Structure fire, 751 Cedar Lane. 7-5-1 Cedar Lane, cross street Romero. Time out 1336."
While Cap was writing down the information and replying, Marco made sure that Lucy was in her gear, and up in the jump seat of the engine. The bay doors went up, and they headed out, following the squad truck.
When they got to the scene, Marco's gut tightened. The structure was an apartment building. Smoke could be seen billowing out of windows on the second and third floors. Fire could be seen intermittenly through the smoke. Marco and Chet were already at the hoses, when Cap yelled. "Marco, Chet, grab the inch-and-a-half."
While Captain Stanley directed his crew, he also kept an eye on Lucy Morales. After several minutes, it became clear that she was following his instructions. She was staying out of the way of the crews while she took her shots. He nodded to himself, then turned his full attention to the crews.
Three hours later, Marco trudged wearily back to the engine, helping Chet gather the hoses. He looked around periodically, but couldn't see Lucy. Once he and Chet had finished, he located Cap.
"Cap, have you seen Lucy?"
"No, not recently, Marco, sorry."
Marco continued on, asking members from the other crews if they'd seen her. Finally, one of the guys from Engine 10 said, "The one with the camera? Last time I saw her, she was over by the ambulances." Marco thanked him and moved on.
He finally found her there. She had laid her helmet and camera off to the side. She was sweaty, and had smudges of soot on her face and shirt. But her voice was calm and friendly as she talked to the elderly man lying on the stretcher in back of the ambulance. It became apparent to Marco that the man knew very little English. Lucy's presence was calming him down, while she translated for the paramedic that was attending to the man. Once they finally had the patient ready for transport, Lucy grabbed her gear and prepared to exit the ambulance. At the last minute, the elderly gentleman reached out and grabbed Lucy's hand. In a shaky, hoarse voice, the man said, "Gracias."
Lucy nodded and patted his hand. "De nada. Get well soon." She stepped down, and the paramedic closed the door, and banged on it, to let the driver know they were good to go.
Turning to Lucy, he added his thanks. "If it hadn't been for you, we would have had a much harder time getting him to cooperate. You were a real godsend."
Lucy dismissed his praise. "Glad I could help." Spotting Marco, she smiled. "Hey, what's up?"
"I was about to ask you the same thing, but I saw. You did really well in there."
She shrugged. "It was nothing. Especially compared with what you guys did. How bad is it?"
"Well, the fire's out. I'm not sure how many people were pulled out, or what their conditions are. I just finished gathering hoses, then came looking for you."
"Well, thank you, kind sir."
Marco looked down at his boots nervously, then back up at Lucy. "Um..Lucy, I know this isn't exactly the best time, but..." He swallowed, then continued. "Would you like to go out to dinner sometime?"
"I thought you'd never ask. I'd love to."
"Great. I know you're kind of busy right now, but when is your next free evening?"
"Next Friday."
"How about 7 o'clock?"
"Okay. I'll give you directions to my apartment when we get back to the station."
********
Over the next several weeks, Lucy and Marco saw quite a lot of each other. When Lucy wasn't busy getting the calendar ready, and Marco was free, they spent their time together. They shared stories of their grandmothers. They saw movies, and either dined out or cooked dinner. Sometimes, Lucy would grab her camera, and they would just walk around different areas of town. They'd talk, and Lucy would shoot roll after roll of film. This was one of those days.
"Madre Dios, it feels good to actually have an entire weekend free. Now that the calendar is on it's way to the printers, I can finally relax. It's been hectic, but I wouldn't have missed the experience for anything." The look in her eyes made it plain to see that meeting Marco was among those experiences.
Marco tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "Lucita, novia." He leaned down, intending to kiss her, but was stopped by a woman's scream coming from down the block.
"Help. Help me. My babies, please, help me." The woman was out on the lawn of her house, sobbing, while smoke poured out the front door. Lucy and Marco ran to her, Marco grabbing her shoulders.
"Ma'am? Ma'am? Are they in the house?"
"Yes, yes. My little boys, they...they were asleep in their room. Oh, God, please." The woman's knees gave out, and Marco gently lowered her to the ground.
"Lucy, call for help. Hurry!" Lucy took off for the nearest house, to call the fire department. Marco turned back to the sobbing woman.
"Ma'am, where is their room? How many children are still in the house?" Marco shook the woman, trying to get the answers he needed. "Ma'am! Where is their room?"
The woman pointed to a set of windows to the right of the front door. "That one. I had just put them down for their nap. Both my boys are in that room."
"Where's the fire?"
"I..." She hiccuped, containing a sob. "I don't know. I fell asleep on the couch, and woke up coughing. It was all I could do to find the front door. Please, you've got to help them."
Marco looked at the room she had pointed out. There were metal bars on the window, so he had no choice but to go in through the house. He grabbed the handkerchief the woman had used to put around her hair and put it around his mouth and nose. He spied a garden hose coiled up next to the front stoop, and grabbed it, turning on the water. Spraying himself with the hose until he was completely drenched, he held onto it as he went through the front door. Using the wall as a guide, he moved to the right as he went through the front door, and felt along until he came to what he hoped was the hallway leading to the children's room. The air was thick with smoke, so he got down on his hands and knees, where it was a little easier to breathe.
He had gone about ten feet when he heard the child's cries. Listening carefully, he finally managed to find the doorway to their room. Just as he crawled into the room, a young child of about two grabbed his arm. Marco held onto him as he headed towards the cries coming from the crib in the corner. Marco grabbed the second child from the crib. Ignoring both children's cries, he used the hose to get the boys wet. Marco told the toddler to hang onto his neck. Grabbing the baby in the one hand, and the hose in the other, he proceeded to follow the hose back to the front door, like a line of breadcrumbs used to mark his path.
Marco was coughing heavily by the time he reached the front door. Both boys had stopped crying, the baby in his arms going limp. The boy on his back was still clinging on tightly, though. Seeing daylight, Marco dropped the hose and headed outside, making sure that both children came with him.
He collapsed several yards from the house, coughing and wheezing, his eyes watering from the sting of the smoke. The fire engines had just pulled up, and paramedics rushed over to where Marco and the boys lay on the grass. The mother ran over, sobbing. As the paramedics worked on the children, the mother kept getting in their way, hampering their efforts. Finally, Lucy came up and gently, but firmly pulled her to the side, murmuring softly. The woman finally calmed down and let the professionals help her boys.
One of the paramedics fitted an oxygen mask over Marco's face. The first breaths were like sweet heaven to Marco. He was still coughing fitfully, but he didn't feel like he was going to pass out any longer. He motioned that he would be okay. He lay still in the grass as everyone worked on the children. He didn't notice when the news truck from one of the local TV stations pulled up. Didn't see the boys' mother telling them what happened, and pointing out Marco, pronouncing him as the angel that had rescued her boys.
Once the children had been loaded into an ambulance and taken to the hospital, the paramedics returned to Marco, preparing to send him to the hospital to get checked out. Lucy was right by his side as they moved him to the stretcher. Just as they were getting ready to load him into the ambulance, the news crew rushed over and stuck a microphone in Marco's face.
"Sir, I understand that you went in and pulled the boys out. Is this true?" the reporter asked.
"Yeah," Marco remarked wearily.
"Did you feel nervous about going in? Wasn't it dangerous?"
"It's my job. That's all that I thought about." He leaned back, spasms of coughing racking his body. He concentrated on breathing deeply of the oxygen that was still coming through his mask. The paramedics loaded the stretcher into the ambulance, manuvering past the reporter that was partially blocking the door.
"I don't understand, sir. Could you elaborate?"
Lucy answered for him. "He's a firefighter. He did what he's trained to do. Now, he needs to get to the hospital, so that's it for your questions." She climbed into the ambulance next to him. The doors closed and the ambulance pulled out, lights and sirens going.
******
The next day, Marco responded to the knock on his door, and found Lucy on the porch. "Hey."
Stepping inside, she reached up and kissed his cheek. "How are you feeling this morning?"
"Better. The coughing has stopped, but my throat is still sore."
"You made the front page." She handed him the paper. There on the front page, was a picture of Marco as he came out of the smoke-filled house, carrying the two boys. Marco read the headline. "OFF-DUTY SMOKE EATER SAVES CHILDREN." He looked down at the picture again.
"Is this one of yours?" he asked Lucy.
She nodded. "I hope you don't mind." She looked uncertain.
"About the picture? No, not at all. It's a good one. Would you like some coffee?"
"No, I have to get going to the studio. I just wanted to stop by and check on you. Think you'll feel up to company tonight?"
"Sounds good. Dinner?"
"I'll bring it with me. You rest." She kissed him, then left.
Marco sat down to read the paper. The article was flattering, to say the least. He was glad those kids were okay. He couldn't help but smile as he finished the story. Chief Anders had plugged the calendar when he'd talked to the reporter. Well, it was for a good cause. The money was going to the Firefighters Benefit Guild, so any kind of publicity for it could only be good.
*******
One month later, the incident was mostly forgotten by the men of Station 51 as their duties returned to normal. Or so Marco thought. Until it came time to do the weekly grocery shop.
Chet burst into the station's kitchen, quickly setting down the groceries he was carrying. He was chuckling. He started to talk, then looked back over his shoulder toward the apparatus bay and began laughing harder. Pretty soon he was laughing too hard to talk, was having trouble catching his breath.
The rest of the crew just watched him, periodically looking toward the door, waiting for Marco to appear, so they could find out what had Chet in such an uproar about.
They didn't have to wait long . When Marco came into the room, what little conversation there was, ceased. Johnny and Roy's mouths fell open in shock. Cap froze with his coffee cup halfway to his mouth, and Mike started choking on the coffee he'd just swallowed. Even Henry raised his head. No one knew what to think.
It wasn't the deep blush that was showing even through Marco's olive complexion. It wasn't the fact that his hair was mussed, or that his uniform shirt was untucked and torn in several places. It wasn't even his missing shoe. It was the lipstick. On his cheeks, on his mouth, on his neck and forehead. Even his badge hadn't been spared. Dozens of shades, ranging from slightly pink to fire-engine red. All placed there by willing, eager and definitely able pairs of lips.
And Lopez just kept muttering. "Shut up, Kelly. Just shut up. I don't want to hear it. Just don't say a word. It's not like you were any big help or anything....."
Cap was the first to break the silence. "What the hell happened to you?"
Marco blushed even further, threw a glance at Chet that promised retribution, then murmured, "Excuse me." and walked out of the kitchen. Chet started laughing again, tears running down his face. It took several minutes before he calmed down enough to explain.
"We were in the meat department, and this woman comes up to talk to him. 'Aren't you that firefighter that saved those kids last month? The one that's in the calendar?' Marco says yes. She turns around and yells, 'I told you it was him, Gladys. It's Mr July! Firefighter July!'"
"Suddenly, out of nowhere, comes this swarm of women. Old, young, tall, short. There must have been a hundred of them. They're all waving the calendar, begging for autographs. So he stands there, graciously signing the things. Then, then...." he snorts, "they attacked. It was like he was Elvis, James Dean and Cary Grant all rolled into one. All I saw of him for about five minutes was a glimpse of his shirt as they grabbed him, each woman trying to get a kiss, some trying to get a piece of his uniform. It was unbelievable."
Chet took a deep breath and continued his story. "For a minute there, I thought I'd have to call you guys in to hose those women down in order to rescue him. They finally got their fill, and they started to leave. But when we tried to walked out, there was this one lady, who had hold of Marco, and she just wouldn't let go. I mean, she latched onto his leg, and he started dragging her across the floor....oh, my god, you should have seen it...he was finally able to shake her lose, but he lost his shoe in the process."
Marco came back in a little while later, having showered, changed, and gotten his spare pair of shoes. Chet walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe we should start calling him Cinderella. We can nickname him, Cinder, that would fit right in with his occupation." Chet wiped his eyes of the tears from laughing so hard as Marco shrugged Chet's hand from his shoulder and glared at him.
"Poor Marco looked like he'd been fighting the Spanish-American war all over again," Chet finished, as Chief Anders walked in behind him.
Captain Stanley stood up. "Chief, hello. What brings you here?"
"I have some good news." He turned to Marco. "Thanks to that story about you in the paper last month, sales of the calendar have gone through the roof. We've already raised more than $50,000 for the Benefit Guild, and orders are still coming in."
"That's great, Chief." Roy said.
"We certainly think so. We've decided to capitilize on the idea. In order to try and keep interest going, we've decided to get all the firefighters featured in the calendar together for an autograph session. People can come and have them sign the calendar."
The men of Station 51 glanced at Marco as he slumped to the floor in a dead faint. As Roy and Johnny rushed over to help, Roy slapping his face, Johnny taking his pulse. Chet elbowed Mike, and whispered, "I wonder what would have happened if they'd made him 'Mr. January' instead."
On the couch, Henry just yawned, and went back to sleep.
" Mr. July " ©1999 Andi Charleville. "Emergency!" and its characters © Mark VII Productions, Inc. All rights reserved. No infringement of any copyrights or trademarks is intended or should be inferred. This is a work of fiction, and any similarity to actual persons or events is purely coincidental.
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