Just Friends

By Tangee Taylor

 

“Yeah right, Gage” Chet said as he rolled his eyes. “I’m sure you can think of a girl as a friend.”

“Oh shut up, Chet,” John told him as he grew increasingly agitated. “She’s a friend from way back, she’s married and has a kid, I’m telling you, she’s just a friend.”

Roy and the Captain walked to the back lot and saw Marco and Mike with amused looks on their faces as Chet and Johnny continued their argument

“Gage, I’d bet anything that you, the ladies man, can’t look at any cute chick and think of her as a friend,” Chet laughed.

Johnny took another step toward Chet, obviously angered when the Captain stepped in between them. “What is going on with you two? You are worse than kids!” Captain Stanley said as he eyed the two of them.

Both Chet and Johnny started talking at once, Marco and Mike where laughing so hard that tears were glistening in their eyes.

“Cap? Johnny ran into an old friend over the weekend and she called this morning to catch up with him. Kelly is just ribbing him about it,” Roy said as he stood there looking at Marco and Mike with a grin on his face.

“Break it up boys” The Cap said, then pointed to Chet “You stop teasing him about his girlfriend”

“Cap! She is NOT my girl…” John started to say when Captain Stanley spun around and pointed to him, “You lighten up and take a joke, Pally."

Both John Gage and Chet Kelly looked at their feet and sighed. Marco and Mike were still laughing and Roy was trying to contain his laughter.

“If you guys are done having your fun, we have some work to do. Chet, it’s your turn on the oven, Johnny, you’ve got to clean out that Refrigerator… oh second thought, Mike, you clean out the Refrigerator.” Cap turned and looked at the others “Gage, you’ve got the latrine, Roy, sweep down the bay and Marco, go mop down the dorm.”

The guys were walking toward their assigned duties, 3 of them laughing, the other 2 with shoulders slumped. “And I’d like to see all of you in 1 hour,” Captain Stanley said before disappearing into his office.

***

“GAGE! PHONE! It’s your girlfriend,” Chet teased as he stuck his head out of the kitchen.

Johnny came stomping out of the bathrooms toward the kitchen “Don’t let him bug you, Johnny” Roy said as he pushed the broom across the Engine bay.

“But Roy, She really just is a… oh never mind!” Johnny muttered as he rounded the corner to the kitchen.

Chet stood leaning against the wall, inches from the phone. Johnny shot him a dirty look and Chet just grinned back at him. John advanced toward him and Chet jumped and took off to return to cleaning the oven, whistling a tune just to further annoy John.

Johnny looked over at Chet then turned his back to him. “Hi Syndi, we just talked an hour ago, everything okay?”

Johnny listened for a minute then stood up straight. “Is she awake? Okay… calm down,” Johnny said, his voice calm, trying to sooth her as he asked several questions in quick succession.

“How far did she fall? Is she bleeding? Does she have a lump? Is she sick to her stomach?” John listened in between each question and nodded.

Roy walked around the corner and stood next to John watching him carefully, Chet stopped whistling and listened as well.

“Syndi, I’m sure it’s nothing. She’s not bleeding. She hasn’t lost consciousness. She is okay. Just watch her for the next couple of hours, if she gets sick, or sleepy, take her to your family doctor. If you want us to come check her out, give me a call. You are only ten minutes away.” John listened some more then said his good-byes and hung up the phone.

“Everything okay?” Roy asked, a bit concerned. Chet remained quiet as he watched.

“Her two year old fell down four steps, Syndi was frantic and wanted to know if she should take her to ER. It seems like everything is okay, just a case of ‘worried mom’," Johnny said.

“Jeez, Gage, are you going to be her personal paramedic now as well as her FRIEND,” Chet teased.

John’s face grew red as he started toward Chet, just then the tones went off and they all stopped.

“Station 51, Car Accident with injuries, 1514 Canyon Road South, 1514 Canyon Road South, cross street Goodwin Drive, time out 08:20.”

***

Johnny and Roy pulled up to the accident scene with the Engine right behind them. A car and a pickup truck had hit each other head on at the intersection. There was a small crowd forming and a man leaning in the driver side of the car. The car had sustained considerable damage and appeared to have several people in it.

“I’ve got the car, Roy. Why don’t you check out the truck?” Johnny said as he jumped out of the Squad and reached into one of the compartments for the med box.

“Lopez, disconnect that battery and hit it with the extinguisher, Kelly and Stoker, see if you can help Roy,” Captain Stanley called out as he headed toward Johnny.

Johnny put the med box down and touched the shoulder of man leaning in the window, “Excuse me Sir, could I get in here?” Johnny asked then looked at the gentleman in surprise when he turned “Dr. Brackett! Are you okay?”

“Yeah, Johnny, I was just on my way to Rampart and stopped to help,” Brackett said as he reached for the med box. “Could you check on those kids in the back? The driver has multiple injuries to her face from hitting the steering wheel but doesn’t appear to have any broken bones, she is however, unconscious, hopefully just a concussion.”

John Gage nodded, then ran around the other side of the car and tried to open the door, Captain Stanley handed him a crow bar and together they popped the door open. John was sliding the seat up to gain access to the rear of the car when he spotted a small child, curled in a ball on the floor of the front of the car. He leaned down and took the child’s pulse then quickly looked over the seat at the three small children in the back. All three where crying and shaken up but appeared okay.

“Okay…. It’s okay, guys. I’m going to check out your sister here, and that man is Dr. Brackett. He’s going to check on your mother. It will be ok, just calm down.” Johnny said as he bent over the little girl.

John looked the little girl over and found a large lump in the middle of her spine. She was unconscious and still curled in the fetal position. He stood up to get some supplies from the med box as he called to Dr. Brackett, “Her pulse is rapid and weak, breathing is slow and shallow and she has an injury to her spine. I’m going to need the child’s BP Cuff, and…”

Suddenly the little girl started to moan, Johnny immediately bent over her again, stroking her hair “Honey it’s okay. I need you to stay still for me, okay? My name is Johnny and it’s going to be okay, we have lots of people to help you.”

The little girl whimpered. A boy of eight or so looked over the seat. “Her name is Lisa and she’s four,” he told Johnny.

“Thank you son, are you hurt?” John asked

“My name is Bobby, I just have a headache. Billy’s arm hurts and Scott won’t say anything.”

Johnny surveyed the boys once more, just then Roy walked up and John turned to him. “How’s the other driver?” he asked.

“Drunk” Roy replied “What have you got here?”

“We have a little girl, four, appears to have a spinal injury, she’s semi-conscious and there are three boys in the back, the little one isn’t talking, the oldest one might have a concussion and the middle one is  complaining that his arm hurts,” Johnny explained. “We have to get this little girl out of here, I can’t check her with the position she is lying in, do you have any ideas?”

Roy looked the car over then turned to the Cap who was holding an IV bag as Marco and Mike helped Dr. Brackett get the woman out of the driver’s seat. “Hey Cap? How about we pop the rest of this window out, pull the boys out from there, then pull this seat back so we can get to this patient in the front seat?”

Captain Stanley considered it for a moment then looked at two of the CHP’s that were standing nearby. “Excuse me guys, can you help my men here for a moment?”

One of the officers took the IV bag from the Captain and the other went over to Roy “What can I do for you?” he offered.

Roy asked him to put a safety blanket over the boys, and explained where to find it on the squad. He then leaned in the window and looked at the frightened boys in the back. “Okay, boys, we’re going to pull you out through the back window here so we can help your sister.” He then looked at the smallest boy with concern. The boy was sitting very still and his eyes were fixed on the seat in front of him. Roy reached in and took the child’s pulse and checked his pupils.

Johnny had just finished taking the little girls vitals when Roy asked for the BP cuff. “Johnny, I think this little one is in shock, can you see Dr.Brackett” He asked, still leaning in the window. “Son? Can you hear me?” Roy shook the boy gently.

“His name is Scott. He’s four,” the child next to him said to Roy “

He’s four?” Roy asked then looked over the seat at the little girl in Johnny was working on. “Is your sister four also?” Roy looked at the boy.

“They are twins,” he said as he rubbed his arm.

Roy could see the boy’s arm was at an odd angle, just then Dr. Brackett walked up, Roy stood up and leaned in to the doctor.“The boy near the window here appears to be in shock, his name is Scott and that is his twin sister in the front,” Roy went on “The one in the middle appears to have a broken arm, the boy on the other side is complaining his head hurts. He’s been quiet for the last few minutes.”

“Their mother is on her way in. Squad 10 just arrived and Roberts went in with her. She’s stable but is looking at some surgery for her face. The driver of the truck is not hurt but will be when he wakes up in jail. The officers say he’s been drinking quite a bit,” Dr. Brackett informed Roy as he leaned over and handed Johnny an IV for the girl.

Brackett leaned in the window just as the officer leaned in the other side prepared to cover the boys with the blanket. “Give me just a second,” the Doctor told the officer. He studied the small boy and checked him over then winked at the boy in the middle, “We’ll have you out of here in no time, Son. Just sit tight for me.” Then he reached for the blanket to help the officer cover the boys.

The Doctor crossed his arms over his chest and surveyed the scene as they cleared away the back window. “Roy, I don’t like the condition he’s in. He is very shocky although he appears uninjured.”

Roy nodded then looked at Brackett “I wonder if it is emotional shock over the condition of his sister, we just found out they are twins,” Roy thought out loud.

“Okay, we’re clear,” Chet advised everyone as the back window was pulled from the car. 

Roy and Brackett each poked their heads in one of the side windows, Chet and Marco crawled up on the back of the car while Johnny comforted the child in the front. Slowly easing the glass filled blanket off of the boys, Brackett checked over the child complaining of a headache. “Looks like we have a concussion over here, Roy. One pupil isn’t responding.”

Roy nodded as he immobilized the middle boy’s arm. The boy let out a groan but was trying to be brave. “A few more minutes buddy, okay? Just a few more minutes,” Roy said to the boy.

Johnny crawled up on the front seat, careful of the child lying on the floor. “I’ve got his legs, be careful of that arm,” he said to Chet as they slowly lifted the boy out the back window.

Chet handed off the child to Leedy, the medic from Squad 10 then turned and looked in the back window. Dr. Bracket was talking to the boy with the head injury. “Son, we’re going to move you. Can you hear me?”

The boy nodded to Dr. Bracket and then whispered, “I want my mom.” Then he burst into tears.

John was leaning over the front seat. “Bobby, come on buddy, it will be okay. You were such a help to us, and it’s almost over. I know you are afraid and your head hurts, but you’ll be okay. I promise you!”

The boy lifted his arm and wiped away the tears then turned his head and looked at Chet. “Do you want me to crawl out this window?”

Chet smiled at him, “No way, buddy. See that man with the white hat out there?”

Bobby looked out the window and spotted Captain Stanley then nodded in Chet’s direction.

“Well that’s our boss. If he sees us letting you do all the work, we’ll be in hot water for sure! My friend Johnny is going to lift your legs, I’m going to lift you under the arms, and we’ll slide you right out of here, okay?”

Dr. Brackett waited until the boy was out of the car. John backed out of the front as the doctor slid the front seat up and crawled back to help Roy who took a fresh set of vitals. “I don’t know Doc, his eyes are fixed, he has no injuries that I can see, and his breathing is a little slow, his pulse a bit fast, I just don’t get it."

“Let’s get him out of here and we’ll see what more we can do, Roy,” Brackett said as he put his arms under the small boy’s legs, then under his shoulders.

“NOOOOOOOOOO” screamed the boy then he started kicking and squirming out of Brackett’s arms. Brackett was stunned for a moment then attempted to settle the boy down.

“Lisa… Lisa… Lisa,” the child screamed over and over as he continued to thrash in the doctor’s arms.

Roy quickly prepared an injection and stuck his head in the window, looking at the doctor for permission to use the mild sedative. Doctor Bracket steadied the boys’ arm then looked at Roy “Do it!”

Almost instantly the boy went limp. They passed him through the window to Chet. “Doc? If you can help Johnny, I’ll help Leedy with the boys,” Roy said.

Doctor Brackett backed out of the car. “Let me know if you need me, Roy” Then reaching down, he pushed the seat all the way back with Gage’s help. Suddenly the seat snapped and was pushed back far enough for them to help the small child.

“First thing we have to do is get her on a backboard, John. Keep her in the same position that she is in.” Brackett looked out the window to Stoker, “Get me a board will you?” Then he turned back to John. “How is she doing?” Brackett asked.

“BP is low, pulse is steady and respiration’s are normal. She hasn’t spoken, just whimpers but seems to  respond to my voice," Johnny said as he held the little girls hand “Just a little longer, Honey. Stay with me, okay? I want to see your pretty face, Sweetie.”

Mike slid the backboard beside John and backed up, standing nearby to help if necessary.

John and Dr. Brakett carefully placed the child on the backboard then secured her to it. As they emerged from the car with her, the other fireman and police on the scene could only look on with sadness. She was so tiny on that backboard. They placed her on the ground where Johnny dropped down beside her and could finally see her face. She had beautiful blue eyes that looked back at him with fat tears sliding down her cheeks.

“It’s okay, Sweetie. We’re out of the car,” John said as he squeezed her hand.

“I want my daddy,” the little girl cried. “My back hurts and my foot hurts.”

Johnny looked up at the doctor and smiled, this could only mean one thing - she isn’t paralyzed!

John checked her over then promised her that he’d ride with her in the ambulance. As he climbed in the back with her, he noticed that both Squads were still there but Roy and Leedy were gone with the boys.

“Hey Cap?” John looked out the back and spotted Hank Stanley

“Marco is taking 10’s in to Rampart, and Chet’s taking yours. We’ll be right behind you, Gage” the Captain said before John could even ask.

Dr. Brackett leaned on the back of the ambulance, “I’ll meet you there.”

John nodded and turned his attention toward the little girl who was crying softly for her father.

“Lisa? Honey? It’s okay. You're going to be just fine, so are your brothers and your mom, okay? We’ll call your daddy when we get to the hospital, ok?”

The little girl started crying harder. All he could do was hold her hand and talk to her in low tones to sooth her. Just as they pulled into Rampart, the child drifted to sleep from exhaustion.

***

John was pouring Roy coffee just as Dixie walked up to the Nurses' Station. “Well, looks like everyone is going to be fine. We have one concussion, a bruised spine, one broken arm, one emotional shock, a broken nose and facial lacerations, all on one family. And the father just left and is headed to jail.”

“What?” Roy and John asked in unison.

“Oh, you didn’t know?” Dixie asked. "The driver of that truck was the man of the family.”

Roy looked at John and then to Dixie. “He hit them on purpose?”

Dixie shook her head “No, from what the oldest one told us, they were headed to the store. He was coming home from work. It was a fluke that he hit them. Turns out they live just a few blocks away from where you picked them up.”

John just shook his head, Roy looked into his coffee and sighed.

“Say, Dixie.” Johnny walked over to Dix and put his arm around her shoulders.

She looked up at him “Yes Johnny?”

“You are a girl and all, lemme ask you a question,” John said as Dixie made a face at Roy that said ‘oh brother, what now?’

“Can a girl and a guy be friends? You know, just friends, nothing else - even if that girl is one fine chick?” John asked.

Dixie looked at him. “Someone breaking up with you again, Johnny?”

Johnny sighed and threw his arms up in the air. “Ya know, why does everyone find it so hard to believe that I can’t be friends with a girl?”

“Probably because you are the Casanova of LA County, Johnny” replied Dixie. “Seriously, what’s this all about?” Dixie asked looking at Johnny, then to Roy.

“I ran into an old friend from back home this weekend. She’s married and has a kid, she’s called me at the station twice today, once to catch up, and then because her daughter was hurt in a fall. Everyone is ribbing me about it,” John explained.

“Hey Johnny, did she ever mention her husband?” Roy asked.

Johnny thought about it for a minute “Now that you mention it, no. No she didn’t.”

“Did you happen to notice a ring on her finger?” Dixie asked

“Now why would I look at her hand? Besides... it was holding on to the hand of her daughter,” John said as his mind began to wonder.

Just then Chet came around the corner. “Hey, Lover Boy, your squad awaits,” he teased as he tossed the keys to Roy then winked at Johnny.

“Shut up, Chet” John, Roy and Dixie said at the same time.

Chet stood looking at them in shock then muttered, “What? What did I say?”

Marco walked up behind Chet and tapped him on the shoulder “Come on, Trouble Maker. Cap is waiting for us outside” Marco nodded in Johnny and Roy’s direction.

“Thanks for bringing the squads in, Guys. See you back at the station.” Roy called out to them.

“Okay, Johnny, lets pick up some supplies and head out,” Roy said.

“Dixie, she’s just a friend, really. I did ask her to the prom when we were kids but she said her folks wouldn’t let her date anyone from the Reservation, I think she would have said yes though. She’s such a nice gal, and pretty little girl too!” John said.

“Johnny, I think you can be friends with a female, so stop worrying yourself and don’t let Chet get to you,” Dixie gave Roy a wink then turned back to John. “I’ll see you later, Friend,” she said, then turned on her heel and walked away.

“HEY! Dixie is a girl, and she’s pretty, and she’s my friend,” Johnny said to Roy with sudden realization.

“Come on, Johnny,” Roy sighed and rolled his eyes.

***

Johnny closed the door on the squad and headed into the kitchen. “I am very happy that little girl didn’t have a paralyzing injury to her spine,” he said as Roy fell in behind him.

“Yeah, we got lucky with that one,” Roy agreed.

“Hey guys, how’s it going?” John asked

Captain Stanley and Marco were hovering over a chessboard while Mike Stoker idly flipped through the newspaper. Chet was talking in a low whisper on the phone.

“What’s Chet being so secretive about?” Roy asked Mike

“I think he’s talking to Johnny’s girlfriend,” Mike replied

“WHAT?” John exclaimed then in three strides was next to Chet .

“Okay, Syndi, I’ll tell him you called,” Chet said then quickly tried to hang up the phone. John snatched it out of his hand then elbowed Chet out of the way.

“Hello?” John said into the receiver as Chet burst into laughter

“OH for crying out loud,” John said then handed the phone back to Chet.

“That is Joe from Station 8,” he said to Roy as he hit Chet with a hand towel. “Very funny, Mike.”

“Thanks, Gage. I thought it was pretty good,” Mike laughed as he flipped the page in the newspaper.

Everyone started to chuckle then stopped as the tones went off. “Station 51, Station 46, Station 8, Truck 4, House Fire, flames showing. 804 Glade Court, 804 Glade Court cross street Malibu. Time Out 1329."

“Station 51, 10-4, KMG365,” Hank Stanley acknowledged into the radio, then handed off the address to Roy before jumping into the Engine.

***

Station 51 was first to arrive at the scene, smoke was showing and a woman was screaming frantically as she ran back and forth in front of the house.

Johnny and Roy jumped from the squad and ran toward the woman. John grabbed the woman by the shoulders and spun her around.

“Syndi! Where is your daughter?” Johnny asked, looking her in the face, then repeating himself, “Syndi, where is your daughter?”

Roy ran back to the Squad, grabbing his and his partner’s turnout gear. “Cap, we have a child trapped in the house” Roy called then ran back to Johnny’s side.

“Oh my god! She’s sleeping, right there” Syndi said indicating a room in the far corner of the house. Flames were not showing but smoke was pouring out of the open window. “Jim went to get her, he hasn’t come out… please help us, Johnny, please,” she begged.

John Gage was pulling on his air mask and adjusting the straps. “Stay right here. Do you understand me? Stay right here.”

“Cap? Can you watch her?” Roy called out as he and Johnny headed into the house. The smoke so dense he put his right hand on Johnny’s shoulder as they were swallowed up by it.

Slowly they climbed the stairs to the second floor. They found a narrow hallway and walked down it until they hit the end.

“This must be it!” Johnny said as he felt the door on his left, then slowly opened it. Although the smoke was not as thick here, it was still difficult to make out anything. Both men dropped to their knees and felt around the floor.

“I’ve got her, Johnny!” Roy yelled. The unconscious child lay limp in his arms as he went to the window.

Chet was climbing a ladder right next to the window that he put up after Captain Stanley pointed out where the little girl was.

“Careful with her, Chet – I’m right behind you,” Roy said as he handed the child out the window.

“Johnny? Hey Johnny!” Roy called out.

“I’ve got him, Roy, I’m right behind you,” Johnny said back in a muffled voice.

Roy climbed out the window and down the ladder. Once at the bottom he tore off his mask and immediately started mouth to mouth resuscitation on the child. Her pulse was strong. She must have just stopped breathing as he handed her off to Chet. Within seconds the little girl was coughing, then crying. Roy smiled to himself and kissed the child on the forehead then handed her to Chet. “Watch her, I’m going to help Johnny. Her mother is right over there,” Roy said pointing toward the street.

Roy looked up to see John struggling with a large man. He started up the ladder to help them when an explosion ripped through the house, throwing Johnny and the man from the ladder. Roy was also blown backward in the explosion.

Fireman dropped their hoses and ran to the two firemen and the victim. Syndi stood by wide eyed and clutching her child to her chest.

Roy stood up, brushing himself off and shaking his head to clear it. Suddenly reality hit him and he turned to face the house. “JOHNNY!” he screamed. Part of it was fear for his friend, part of it was his temporary loss of hearing due to the explosion. He spotted John sitting up, next to him, the child’s father lying still.

“What hap…” Johnny looked around then slowly stood with the assistance of Marco and someone from Station 8.

“You okay, Buddy?” Marco asked with concern.

“Yeah, just a bit shook up,” Johnny replied tugging on his ears. Marco’s voice was fuzzy and Johnny couldn’t get rid of the loud droning in his ears.

Roy was relieved to find his partner okay. He knelt down beside Chet to check over the girl's father. A quick check of the man found him to be breathing. It looked like he broke his ankle in the fall, but otherwise survived it.

Roy thought the man and Johnny were quite lucky as he turned and shouted to Marco, “ I need the drug box.”

Johnny stood on shaky knees trying to collect him self. As far as he could tell, everything was okay except his hearing, which he hoped would be temporary.

The men returned to fighting the fire when they saw that their co-workers were okay. Captain Stanley had three ambulances standing by and was busy calling out orders to the crew.

Syndi ran with her daughter, across the lawn and dropped to her husband’s side. “Is he okay? Oh god, is he ok?” she asked Roy.

“He’ll be fine, Ma’am. It looks like he’s broken his ankle, and has some bruises. But he’ll be fine,” Roy said, then looked at her. “Are you okay, Miss?”

“I’m fine. I’m worried about my daughter and husband, and this is entirely my fault! I left grease on the stove while I went to answer the phone, oh it's all my fault,” she cried.

Johnny came over and reached out for the little girl. “Syndi? I need to put some oxygen on her, she has inhaled quite a bit of smoke. Okay?”

Syndi handed the little girl to Johnny then watched as her husband and daughter were hooked up to oxygen and IV’s. She was amazed that these men ran into a burning house to rescue the two people that meant more to her then anyone in the world. She was also amazed that a little orange box hooked them up to a real live doctor who told them what to do. Suddenly it was all too much for her and she collapsed in tears. Sobs wracked her body.

Johnny stood up and took her into his arms. “It’s okay. It’s going to be okay. They are alive, and so are you. That’s all that matters.”

Syndi couldn’t help but agree. “Oh, Johnny! You are the best friend a girl could have, thank you SO much,” she declared as she kissed his cheek.

John turned crimson red as Chet looked on in amusement. I will never live this down, he thought to himself as he let go of Syndi and helped put her husband on a stretcher to be taken to Rampart.

***

Later as they were standing in the kitchen, Roy said to Johnny, “Man, her husband was big!”

“You aren’t kidding he was big – a good 6’4” and 220 pounds! I can’t believe the way this turned out,” Johnny said.

Curiosity got the best of Chet. “So, Johnny, are you best bud’s with your girlfriend's husband now?”

All eyes were on Johnny. Roy knew something the others didn’t and his eyes glistened with laughter.

John strode up to Chet. Chet was backing up till finally he hit the sink and could go no further.

“Well, Chet, funny how things work out, don’t you think? Jim Haskins, that would be my ‘girlfriend's’ husband, is doing great. He woke up and thanked Roy and me for saving his family. Yeah Chet… you’ll never guess what my new buddy does for a living”.

Chet stood there shaking his head back and forth. “No, Gage… what does he do?”

“He’s an Engineer, Chet. Same thing as Stoker here. They just transferred here from Nevada.” John said with a grin.

Roy could take it no longer. He burst into gales of laughter as Johnny continued.

“Oh, Chet, he is one big dude. He’s on A shift over there at 8's, but he doesn’t start until next week. Big dude,” Johnny emphasized.

Johnny became real animated, trying not to crack a smile. “Yeah, I can’t wait to tell him about all that ribbing you gave me over Syndi. I’ ll make sure he knows that all along, I tried to tell you we were just friends,” Johnny clapped his hands together, rubbed them and laughed. “Oh, Chet, I want to be there when you two meet.”

Chet paled, closed his eyes and swallowed hard. “Gage… Johnny, old buddy, you know I was teasing don'’ you?”

Everyone had a good laugh… except Chet.

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