“Let’s go see your mom.” I accompany her over to the ambulance where the EMT is examining Tessa.
Thankfully, she has no cuts from the debris falling on top of her, but will have some bruising. The worst thing is all the smoke she inhaled. That’s the most dangerous thing about fires. It can decrease lung function, and a lot of people suffocate due to the lack of clean air.
When I shift around to head back to the truck and help the guys with the hose, Tessa clutches my arm.
“What’s your name?” she says, her voice scratchy.
“Damon,” I reply, holding out my hand, gazing into the green eyes before me. She must not remember me. Maybe that’s a good thing after our incident. She works at the local grocery store by my house, and a couple times I tried to work up the courage to ask her out, but I talked myself out of it.
“I’m Tessa. Thank you for saving me and my daughter.” Her hand reaches out to shake mine.
A smile takes over, and I reply, “It’s my pleasure, ma’am. Glad to see you’re going to be okay. That little girl needs you.”
We exchange a smile as I walk away, heading back to the truck, to receive an ass chewing from my brother.
“You should have waited, damn it. What the hell were you thinking? You could’ve died, just like Dad,” Liam yells.
His face is crimson, and I know what he’s thinking. Don’t be a hero. But I can’t help who I am. Yes, there were consequences to think about, but the good exceeded the bad. The chance of us not making it out of a building is high, but we can’t let that stop us from attempting to save people.
“I had it,” I reply, clutching the hose and ripping the fire a new one.
As it sprays over the structure still tumbling down, my mind drifts to Tessa. My brothers didn’t know about my crush on her. There must be a reason fate brought us together today, right?
Perspiration drips off my forehead as I twist the hose off, and the boys assist me in placing it back on the truck. The fire is out, but the destruction is still happening, with debris continuing to fall. The crowd has become bigger around the destruction, with people stopping their cars and taking in the scene.
“Let’s head back to the station,” Liam calls out, hopping into the driver's seat.
Winter is the worst season for fires in Grapevine because of all the objects left plugged in like heaters, or even burning candles. Sometimes it’s defective wiring, but there is always an investigation.
Luckily, we haven’t hit winter yet, and the leaves are still crunching beneath my feet as I stride to the truck, savoring the breeze for longer. September in Texas isn't too bad with the temperature being in the sixties. We get a couple of months in between scorching hot and the chill of the forties. Every once in a while we will have some snow, but not very often.
After leaving the complex, my mind always assesses if there’s something I could have done differently. Either better or quicker. My brothers sometimes tell me I’m too critical of myself, but every second counts. If we were a couple minutes later, Tessa could have died and left behind her daughter. I tremble thinking about it.
After removing our gear off the truck, I head inside to the breakroom, and my mind travels back to an idea I’ve been throwing around.
We sit down at the table, and I chug a bottle of water to help relieve the burning sensation in my throat. “So, I’m thinking about purchasing some property.”
“For what? Like another house?” Liam asks.
“Not for me, but every week people suffer misfortune, leaving the scenes of fires with only the clothes on their backs, and most of the time they end up in shelters. What if we could help them instead?” My arms cross and I lean back in my chair.
“I’m listening. You know I’m down to help.”
“We aren’t wealthy by any means, but purchasing some property and offering it up to the community sounds like something Mom and Dad would do,” I respond.
My father left instructions for his life insurance to be split into three accounts for me and my brothers. One thing my father always said was, “Being a firefighter is amazing, but you should still go to college.” So, the contingency on the account was we would gain access after obtaining at least an associate’s degree and reach twenty-one years old.
When my mother passed, her life insurance was also placed in these accounts with instructions to use toward retiring early so we can enjoy our lives.
That’s what Liam and I have been putting our money toward instead of spending it on useless stuff like our younger brother, Aiden.
“You think we can find something that isn’t too high? I can chip in one hundred thousand dollars. The rest I have in a fund to build interest.”
“If we can get Aiden to agree to pitch in, that’s plenty. I can’t imagine we couldn’t find a property for three hundred thousand dollars in Grapevine.”
This is something we can operate as a family, to facilitate aid in our neighborhood after witnessing the tragedy strike family after family.
I draft up a text to Aiden and edit it twice. He has issues with money, so I’m not sure if he will be able to go in with us.