Embracing Juliette (Texas Heroes: Station 9 #1)

Chapter 53

53

Dylan

I stood by Juliette’s side. Pride filled my chest as she stood tall and introduced us, her voice starting out with a slight tremble before growing loud, strong, and clear. “Firefighters are important community helpers. We are lucky to have very special firefighters here today. Please say hello to Dylan and Cole.”

A hundred little voices called out an indiscernible greeting.

“Hello, everyone,” I said. “Cole’s going to show you how we put on our equipment. He may look and sound funny with it on, but it’s still just him. So if you ever see firefighters like us, do not be afraid. We are there to help you.” I narrated Cole’s actions as he put on his turnout gear and SCBA and then crawled around the gymnasium floor, touching a few of the kids’ feet and beckoning for them to follow him, until we had a crawling conga line around the gym. “They’re crawling because smoke rises, so when there’s smoke, you want to stay down low.”

More kids followed to crawl around until it was total pandemonium.

Juliette laughed softly. “They love it,” she whispered.

“They’re cute,” I whispered back.

“I know.”

“You’re cute too.”

“Stop it.” Her face pinkened beautifully, and I stopped because I’d never embarrass her at work. But later I’d tell her exactly how sexy she looked in her professional black slacks, low boots, and gray blouse, so confident and in control, fulfilling my sexy substitute teacher/lead OT fantasy to a T.

“Okay, everyone back to your seats so Cole can show you something else.” I waited while the kids sat, many of them with help from their teachers. When most of the kids were ready, I asked, “Does anyone know what to do if you have fire on your body or your clothes?” A few answered, “stop, drop, and roll,” while a couple of others yelled out, “run,” and one said, “jump in the pool.”

Cole demonstrated how to stop, drop, and roll, and the kids happily joined in, with some rolling all the way across the gym, and others just rocking in place. It took a while, with some tears and yelling included, for the kids to return to their seats.

“It’s okay,” Juliette whispered. “It happens. Just continue.”

“How can you get help if there’s an emergency like a fire or if someone is badly hurt?”

A couple of kids said to call 911. I pulled out a toy phone and dialed 911 to call Cole on his toy phone, demonstrating what to say and do on the call.

“Does anyone have any questions?” I asked.

“Did you always want to be a fireman?” a girl sitting up front asked.

“I did. I’ve loved everything about firefighting since I was a kid. I went to college and tried a few other things before becoming a firefighter though. Sometimes you know exactly what you want to do, and sometimes it takes a while to figure it out—even if you think you know—and either way is okay.”

“How did you get hurt?” a brown-haired boy asked.

“I hurt my leg when I was working in a fire and I had to climb out of a window, but it will be okay soon. I only need this cast and crutches for a little longer. Everyone got out safely, and that’s all that matters. Being brave and strong means doing whatever it takes, even when it’s hard or scary, and everyone who helped with the fire was very brave and very strong.”

“I-I-I want to be a-a h-hero, too,” a tiny little boy in the back stammered.

“There are many ways to be a hero. I once thought that the only way I could be a hero was to be a fireman, but now I know that there are a million ways to be a hero, and the most important one is to take good care of yourself and the people you love. I can see there’s a hero inside you. Whether you grow up to be a fireman, or anything else, you’re going to fight hard to be the best you can be, and that makes you a hero.”

The little boy beamed.

“Okay, does anyone want—” I stopped myself, imagining the chaos if I finished my announcement.

“Juls,” I whispered. “How do you want to tell them to go outside?”

“Um…” I saw nervousness wash over her at the thought of having to say it to everyone. “I’ll get the principal.”

I admired her as she walked past all those watchful eyes to the principal on the other side of the gym. The slight stiffness in her movements made it obvious to me that she was nervous, but so proud of how she handled herself so confidently that no one else would ever guess how far she’d come to be able to do this today.

She spoke to the principal for a moment, then he came to stand with us.

“Please join me in thanking Dylan and Cole for their service to the city of San Antonio and for being here with us today.” Applause and shouts rang out around the gym. “They have one more thing to show us. Please line up with your classes.”

The kids went crazy when they got to the parking lot and saw the fire trucks and ambulance with their flashing lights. Liam, Ryan, Ethan, and Brady waited by the trucks, and when I saw they had it all under control, I tugged Juliette’s hand and pulled her back towards the school. “Show me where the bathroom is.”

“You need to go?”

“No, I need a minute with you.”

Juliette led me to an empty classroom with windows that overlooked the back of school, out of view of the parking lot. “Um, I’m at work.”

“I’d never disrespect you or endanger the kids by doing anything here. I just need to tell you how proud I am of you. And that I love you. So much.”

“I love you too, Dylan. And I’m so proud of you too.”

I couldn’t resist pulling her in for a quick hug and pressing a kiss to her forehead. “Now go back out there and continue being the best lead therapist I’ve ever seen.”

“I’m the only one you’ve ever seen.”

“I could see them all, and you’d still be the best.”