Chapter Text
Arms crossed over their chest, legs bouncing up and down uncontrollably, or pacing around the busied room, every member of the 126 had their way of dealing with anxiety. Someone among them even counted the minutes since their Probie entered that exam room before realizing minutes slowly started to turn into an hour. They all remembered it was their friend’s last chance at becoming a firefighter, and no one dared to think about the what-ifs he failed. They stayed convinced that the young man would officially be one of their own soon. It was only a matter of minutes now, just a few more minutes…
After a long, agonizing hour, Mateo exited the room with an unreadable expression. The team gathered around their youngest member, their bodies rigid from tension. Probie looked at his teammates' anxious expressions before a bright smile stretched his lips. “I got a 92%!! " he exclaimed proudly.
A brief second of silence followed Mateo’s statement before everyone around him realized what he said and burst out screaming their relief and excitement. The room was filled with jubilant cheers and laughter, celebrating their collective success. One by one, they hugged their youngest team member, congratulating him for his hard work and accomplishment.
“Alright, people! Let’s celebrate! Let’s go to my place. We’ll have a big BBQ!”
The little group agreed before making their way outside. Owen watched them leave, but when he tried to follow, his phone rang. Looking down, he frowned at his device.
“Cap!” Judd’s voice erupted from the entrance. “Are you coming?”
Owen looked up briefly, forced a smile, and nodded. “Go ahead! I’ll join you later.”
The second in command frowned but gave the older man a curt nod.
After the whole team left the building, Owen took his phone out. “Deputy Chief, how can I help you?”
“Captain Strand! I know this is your day off, but I must see you immediately. I’ll be waiting at the Station.”
Owen opened his mouth to reply, but the Deputy Chief hung up. The Captain lowered his hand, his gaze locked on his device, and whispered, “Will do, Sir!”
The Strand patriarch stayed frozen for a minute. What did the Deputy Chief want to talk about? Judging by the cold tone of his voice, it seemed important. No one made a reprehensible mistake, so it may have something to do with Evan’s transfer. Was something wrong with the transfer papers? Owen hoped so. He prayed no one tried to pry into his son’s past. No one would understand what brought his son to Texas.
“Dad?”
Owen’s head snapped up towards the source of the voice.
TK stood at the entrance of the building, his face worried. “Is everything okay?”
Owen faked a big smile on his face and waved his son’s worry off with his hand. “Sure! Just the Chief wanting to see me.”
“The Chief?” TK repeated questioningly. “What did you, Dad?”
“Why do you automatically think that I did something wrong? Maybe he just wants to praise me for all our good work.” He replied with all the enthusiasm he could fake.
“Okay! Join us later once you’re done with the Chief.”
“Will do!”
Owen exited the building with TK but parted ways with him to climb into his car.
As the Captain rode towards the Station, dark thoughts plagued his mind. The Chief’s tone suffered no misinterpretation; he was furious! A Captain less experienced than him could’ve been fooled by his rushed order, but not him. After decades spent as a firefighter and Captain, he learned how to read people. But despite his skill, Owen didn’t know how to react, and most importantly, he didn’t know who caused the Chief to be so angry. His instincts screamed that the man’s fury was directed toward Evan. The LAFD swept the whole Lawsuit under the carpet, not wanting this story to go public. This story wasn’t common knowledge yet, but maybe someone couldn’t keep his mouth shut, and that hidden story reached the Chief’s ears.
Stopping at a red light, Owen let out a humorless chuckle. If only he could worry about one son, things would be easier for his poor nerves. Instead, the distraught father thought back to that time when he discovered T.K.’s unconscious body. His youngest son could hardly handle his boyfriend’s rejection and found solace in a bottle of Oxy. As a father, Owen tried his best to hide his son’s terrible mistake. Luckily for him, his team at the 152 respected his will to give T.K. a second chance and never spoke about that incident. However, since he arrived in Texas, he identified the persons who would gladly take his place on the first given occasion. He bet some would shamelessly dig out for dirty secrets like these.
Before he realized it, Owen parked outside the Station and stopped the engine. His hand rested on the door handle, but he couldn’t find the strength to open it. Brow creased, the Captain stared at the renovated Firehouse as if a monster hid inside, waiting for him to crosse the distance before swallowing him whole. Hiding in his car or running away from the Chief wasn’t an available option. He had his back against the wall; his only choice was to move forward and face his fear.
Inhaling deeply, Owen opened the door and headed straight for his office.
“Captain Strand!” The Deputy Chief greeted him as soon as he stepped foot inside. “Thanks for coming here on your day off.”
Owen stopped at the entrance when he spotted Bobby, acknowledging him with a curt nod. “Texas!”
“New York!” He replied with his usual smirk.
“Captain Tyson and I are old buddies.” The Chief announces, leaning against the Captain’s desk. ”He mentioned to me at the club how much he admires you for fighting through your, uh, cancer diagnosis.”
“He did!” Owen marveled between gritted teeth, throwing a murderous glance at his so-called friend.
Radford chuckled. “Relax, Captain! As much as I’d like to lecture you about this little white lie, Billy here advocated for you and told me how well you handled the chemo and your duty as a leader. I was skeptical at first, but he convinced me that this wasn’t the problem here.”
Not the problem here? Owen thought.
The Captain tried to contain his murderous expression and to turn it into a fake smile as he looked back at Billy’s hideous grin. The smug bastard pretended to be his friend to only gather intel about him.
He can be a bit slippery.
Michelle’s words echoed in Owen’s mind, almost mocking him, reminding him how blind he had been. But something felt off here. If Billy didn’t plan to use the cancer card against him, what was he up to?
“In fact,” Radford continued, breaking the Captain’s train of thought. “I can forgive your little secret about your condition since it hadn’t prevented you from doing formidable work. But there’s someone I cannot forgive, and it is your son.”
“What do you mean, my son? He hasn’t done anything reprehensible. He’s a good firefighter.”
Radford frowned, arms crossed. “Don’t play dumb with me, Strand! I’m not talking about Tyler Kennedy, but your eldest son, Evan Strand! Or should I call him Evan James Buckley, former L.A.F.D. firefighter!”
Choking down his burning desire to jump at Billy’s throat, Owen took a deep breath to try and control his voice. “Sir! With all due respect, you don’t know the full context of what led…”
“I don’t care!!!!!” The Chief’s powerful voice vibrated in the small office. “I’m not interested in listening to the biased version of an overprotective father! Billy told me everything I needed to know about your son and what he did! Austin doesn’t need a man who turns against his colleagues and hierarchy in its ranks!”
“What do you mean?” Owen’s pleading voice asked.
Radford stood up, his arms firmly pressed against his chest. “It means for as long as I’m the Deputy Chief, your son will never be a part of the A.F.D.!”
Owen opened his mouth to reply, but no words could cross the barrier of his lips as the Chief walked out of the office.
After a few seconds of unbearable silence, Billy stood up. “Believe it or not, Owen, but I’m sorry.”
“Get out!” The wounded Captain muttered through gritted teeth. “Get out before I throw you out myself.”
Billy snickered as he stood by the door. “Cool down, Owen! Stress isn’t a Captain’s good friend, especially when you have cancer.”
Owen spun around to face the traitor. “But why, Billy?! You could’ve easily taken me down by using the cancer card! Why did you choose Evan?”
The Texan shrugged his shoulder, a bright smile on his face. “Because it’s way more fun this way! Seriously, Owen! You’re like Superman! To take you down, I needed to find your Kryptonite. Turns out that it was your unmeasurable love for your sons.”
“So, that’s it? You prevented Evan from working for the A.F.D., and you think you won?”
Billy pretended to think, then replied. “Basically, yes! You see, people have a lot to say about your son and his rocky start in the Fire Department. You can’t imagine how easy it was for me to find people willing to describe your son’s personality. He’s like many other firefighters. His job is his whole life! He cannot picture himself doing anything else. So, if I prevent him from working here, his only remaining option is to relocate to another state, hoping no one heard about what he did. And from how you talked about him and your relationship, if he leaves, you won’t have the heart to abandon him… again.”
Teeth and fist clenched, Owen tried his best to stop the trembling of his body. His will was the last bulwark against his desire to kill that evil snake. Turning his back to him, Owen moved to his desk and put his hands on either side of the wooden furniture. He stayed paralyzed for a few seconds, trying to control the erratic rhythm of his heartbeats.
“So this is what you’ve been keeping from us.” T.K.’s indignant voice erupted from the entrance.
“Not now, T.K.!” Owen’s broken voice replied.
Leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest, Tyler shrugged nonchalantly. “Okay, not now! But when? Do I have to wait til you’re fired, or should I wait til your cancer kills you?”
Owen let out a shaky breath. Of course, T.K. knew about his cancer. After all, the truth always found its way to the surface. The old Captain’s heart constricted in his chest as angry tears escaped his eyes. His son didn’t want to be mean, but no one liked to face ugly truths. Now, Owen started to realize the consequences of his mistakes, but he was too lost and too heartbroken to face them now. He tried to stay strong for so long it physically hurt now to stand tall. His shaking arms couldn’t support him. The now tired Captain fell on the floor, crumpled against his desk, arms wrapped around himself like a lost child.
From his vantage point, T.K. felt powerless. There, in front of him, was the man he always admired from afar. His father represented his ideal of a true man. A kind-hearted person who’d move mountains for his family. Empathetic yet incredibly strong and resilient. Owen Strand always had been his hero, but the young firefighter only realized now how idiotic it had been of him to idealize his father like that. These images were not meant to last as kids grew older. Dads were not heroes; they were just men who tried their best for their families. They had their breaking points, too, and when they reached them, who was there for them?
Moving forward, Tyler kneeled before his father and took his hands. “Dad!” The young man called him, his voice trembling.
“I can’t breathe, Tyler! I feel like I can’t breathe!”
The Captain’s lamentation broke through his son’s inner walls. The young man sat beside his dad and held him tight against him.
9-1-1
A beer in his hand, arms crossed over his broad chest, Judd watched the whole team, minus the Cap and T.K., gathered around the backyard wooden table. They laughed and talked vividly about Probie’s success at his exam. The Second In Command’s tight lips barely stretched at this display of cheerfulness. Despite his will to rejoice at today’s good news, the Texan dreaded for the other shoe to drop.
Pessimist!
Scoffing inwardly, Judd looked askance at his beautiful wife, cooking lunch for the whole team. His wife was so different from him. Where he saw darkness, she saw hope. Sometimes, he wished he could see through her eyes, but part of him refused to be that naïve. Some would say it takes a lot of courage and strength to stay positive, but for others, Judd included, it was the best way to be disappointed at best and shattered at worst, just like it happened a few months ago when Judd’s whole team died on a call.
“Judd?” A distant voice called him. “Judd!!!”
Jumping in surprise, the Texan looked at his wife’s puzzled expression. “What?”
“Are you okay, honey?” Her perplexed face morphed into a worried one.
Mouth agape, Judd tried to think of a good lie to brush off his love’s concerns but couldn’t find any. Sighing heavily, he shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Stepping closer to her husband Grace put her hands on his arms. “Is this about Owen?”
Judd bent his head down, unsure of what more to say. Since they started dating, Judd made it a rule to never lie to Grace. Their relationship grew strong thanks to that rule until the explosion that took his friends’ lives. The Texan proudly kept his pain for himself, which almost cost him his marriage. After that ordeal, Judd vowed to never lie to his wife again.
“Do they know?” She asked in a hushed tone.
Judd shook his head in response.
“I’m sure he’s just waiting for the right moment.”
“That’s the problem, sweetie! I don’t think there is a right moment. And the more he waits, the harder it will be for the team to digest the truth.”
Grace looked tired; she inhaled sharply, and Judd knew he was about to be lectured. “Honey! Owen isn’t trying to keep things from you intentionally. He’s only human, and right now, I’d bet everything that he’s just scared.”
Scare of what? Judd thought, although he knew the answer to that question. The Texan couldn’t play dumb, even with himself. Owen, despite what everyone thought, wasn’t a Superman. His strength lay in his capacity to lean on his comrades, to allow himself to break sometimes. However, Judd could guess that since he learned about his cancer diagnosis, Owen stopped relying on others. The question now is, how long can he handle this until he reaches his breaking point?
Opening his mouth to answer to his wife, Marjan interrupted the Texan by entering the kitchen.
“Judd! Someone’s here to see you.”
Judd looked at her high-strung expression and frowned. Who could provoke such disdain from Marjan? Curious to see who it was, the Second in Command exited the kitchen to see Billy standing in his backyard.
“What are you doing here, buddy?”
“I smelled delicious food!”
“Sorry, man! This is a little celebration for our Probie’s success at his exams.”
“I heard that! Congratulations!” Billy exclaimed with a toothy grin.
“Thank you, Sir!” Mateo replied happily.
“I won’t bother you too long. I was just passing by to check up on you, but I see you’re all fine! Strangely…” Billy's voice trailed off before turning his back to them.
“Wait a minute, Billy! What do you mean?”
The Captain turned around, confusion written all over his face. “Uh… I’m not sure this is the right moment. I’m sorry! I thought you knew!”
“Knew what?” Judd asked, annoyance clear in his tone.
Billy pretended to look at everyone around the backyard, unsure what to do. He sighed and bent his head down, a hand rubbing at the back of his neck. “Well, this is embarrassing. Maybe you just ask Owen to tell you.”
“I don’t know what this is all about, but you’ve already said too much, so go on!” Paul pushed him to continue.
“The Chief just learned about that new guy Owen wanted to hire, Evan Buckley, right? Well, this young man sued the L.A.F.D., something about him wanting his job back, but the Department arguing he just wasn’t ready yet.”
“What??!” The team exclaimed.
“Hey! Hold your horses! I mean, we don’t know what happened to the guy; maybe he had good reasons to do that.” Billy tried to calm them before a low sigh escaped him. “Poor Owen! Handling lung cancer is hard enough; he didn’t need that guy coming here and causing trouble for everyone!”
A new series of questions erupted from the team at this latest piece of information.
Arms crossed over his broad chest, Judd looked at Billy and couldn’t buy his innocent act. “I think you should leave, Billy! You’ve done enough!”
“I’m sorry, Judd! I thought you knew!”
“I’m sure you did!” The Texan replied monotonously. “Goodbye, Billy!”
The Captain walked backward with a sly smile as he left. After the man’s departure, a deafening silence fell on the group. No one dared to move a muscle, let alone say something about what about.
After a few minutes, Paul’s gruff voice growled. “Won’t someone say something?”
Judd slowly turned around, irritation clear on his features. The young man was ready to face the critics. “Talk about what, Paul?”
“Are you serious?” Paul asked, eyes widening in surprise. “Maybe we can talk about these bombs your friend dropped on us!”
“Paul, calm down! Now isn’t the time to make a fuss!” Marjan stepped in.
“No! You don’t have the proper reaction! How can you be so calm about this? Our Captain’s a liar and wanted to let a traitor into our ranks!”
“Whoa! Hold your horses!” Judd exclaimed, hands raised, trying to ease the tension.
“NO!!! We’re not putting this under the carpet! We are going to discuss this RIGHT. NOW!!!”
“I’m not trying to put anything under the carpet! I’m just asking you to cool down so we can have a proper conversation.”
Looking at Judd and Marjan, Paul took a deep breath to stop his tantrum. He realized how overwhelmed he had become by what he learned and felt suddenly awful.
Judd put a comforting hand on Paul’s shoulder. “Look, I know this is a lot to digest, but whatever reasons Cap had to lie to us, I’m sure he did it for a good reason.”
Frowning, Paul looked at Judd’s face and started to put the pieces back together. “You knew!”
Judd knew his colleague wasn’t asking a question. “What difference does it make if I knew?”
“Are you serious?” Paul asked, taking a step away from Judd. “Maybe this isn’t a big deal for you, mister local guy, but it makes a huge difference for us! We would’ve loved for the Captain to be honest with us before we relocated our whole life here! What do you think, Marjan?”
Both men looked at the young firefighter, who barely said two words during this whole argument.
“Where were you during 9/11, Paul?” She simply asked.
Her colleague looked at her, a betrayed expression on his face. He opened his mouth to reply, but she interrupted him.
“You weren’t there! None of us were! Our Captain was one of those brave firefighters who risked their lives that day. Can you imagine what it must be like to learn that you got cancer after fulfilling your duty? It’s easy for us to judge him, but try to put yourself in his shoes. So what if he lied? He’s still a great Captain, the best I met. If Billy hadn’t told us about his cancer, we probably wouldn’t have noticed anything. You wanted my opinion? Captain Strand is a hero, not a mere liar.”
Paul noticed how his friend’s eyes shone and the tremor in her voice during her speech. Clenching his teeth hard, the young man briefly looked up and sniffed before clearing his throat. “What about you, Probie? What do you think?”
Arms wrapped around his chest, his thin body shaken by violent spasms; Mateo looked at his friends as hot tears rolled down his cheeks. “I don’t want Captain to die!”
The team cringed when they saw the pain in their friend’s eyes. Marjan stepped forward, ready to ease his worries away, but Mateo backed up from her.
“You’re so selfish! Our Captain may be dying, and you’re complaining about your problems!”
The team shared a worried look. None of them knew how to approach the kid.
Skirting around the team, Grace stopped before Mateo and took his hands in hers. “Let’s not lose hope now, Mateo. Austin has the best Oncologist in the country. If someone can save our Captain, it’s them.”
Mateo nodded, letting this medical fact ease his frantic mind. “Okay!” He whispered weakly before letting Grace lead him back to the kitchen.
When their Probie was out of earshot, Paul turned toward Marjan and Judd. “Look, I’m sorry for what I said about Cap, but can we talk about that lawsuit thing?”
Marjan and Judd glanced at each other, a tired expression on their face.
9-1-1
Evan left the veterinary clinic, the puppy walking alongside him. Looking up, the young man saw the sun slowly descending the sky, hauling a dark, starry cloak in its wake. Frowning, Evan cursed himself. He stupidly thought that he’d be out of that clinic before sundown. He never expected the place to be so crowded, to wait for so long, or for the appointment to be so long. Owen must be worried; although he hadn’t texted to ask where he was, Evan knew his dad trusted him and probably tried to give him the space he needed.
At this hour, the temperature started to cool down, and a soft breeze caressed the blond man’s features. With a soft smile, Evan looked down at his new furry friend and started walking toward his house.
By the time the duo arrived in front of their house, it was dark in the lively streets of Austin. Evan expected Tyler to be with Carlos but didn’t really know if his dad would be home. So, the young man found it strange that the house’s lights were on. At this hour, it could only mean that they were waiting for him. Evan felt a cold hand clutch his heart at why they could’ve stayed up this late just to see him get home safely. Although he knew they were worried about him, Evan also knew it was just a matter of time before the other shoe dropped.
Picking his furry friend off the floor, Evan held him close to give himself courage. Then, he looked into his big brown eyes and smiled. “Let’s go, buddy! Can’t hide forever now, can we?”
Evan opened the front door and walked inside the living room, where Owen and Tyler waited on the couch. When the Strand men’s eyes met, Evan knew his hunch was correct. They were about to break out a bad news.
Owen stood up and smiled at the little creature in his son’s arms. “I see you made yourself a new friend.”
Evan frowned. His dad’s voice was low and raspy. He tried not to show his worry and dropped his little buddy on the floor. “I did, " he replied in a small voice.
The little creature went straight in front of T.K., begging for attention. Tyler immediately picked it up and played with him. “What’s his name?”
“Milo.”
“Nice to meet you, Milo! You’re an active little buddy, aren’t you?”
Despite the unspoken tension in the room, Evan smiled fondly at his brother’s antic. From the corner of his eyes, he saw that his dad eyed him cautiously, so he sat on the opposite couch and looked straight at him.
Owen sighed heavily and sat next to T.K. who looked up at his brother but continued to play with Milo. “Evan, there’s something you need to know.”
“I already know.”
Frowning, Owen repeated the statement. “You know…” he trailed off.
Evan nodded. “I discovered the Granisetron in the Station’s bathroom the night of the tornadoes.”
Owen nodded thoughtfully. “That’s why I thought when I saw you left the Station.”
“You knew?” Evan asked, looking at his brother.
“I discovered that the same night you did.”
“Why hadn’t you said anything?”
The Captain shrugged. “I guess I was scared. You’re not the only ones who are scared. I’m scared, too. I wanted to deny it as much as I could, but saying it out loud would’ve made it feel real, and that’s something I wasn’t ready for.” He paused for a second. “You don’t have to worry about me. I accepted to relocate here partly because Austin had the best Oncologists in the country. If someone can help me, it’s them.”
Evan listened carefully to every word his father said and tried to detect even the smallest lie, but there weren’t. Moreover, after his dad revealed the truth about his condition, Evan felt like he wanted to say more, probably about something not cancer-related. Glancing at his brother, the eldest Strand confirmed that theory when he spotted Tyler’s elusive gaze. “Go ahead!”
Owen didn’t even try to appear surprised by the comment.
“I know there’s more, so go ahead! Break the bad news already!”
The Captain’s hands wriggled under his son’s intense glare. He tried to prepare himself for this moment, but the longer his son watched him with that resigned look on his face, the less he felt capable of telling the truth. “Evan…” Owen started, voice raw with emotion.
“The Deputy Chief learned about the Lawsuit, thanks to Billy the Snake.”
The cold hand that gripped his heart earlier now seemed to want to rip it apart. Teeth clenched, Evan looked at his dad, trying desperately to hold back the tears threatening to erupt. A small voice reminded him that everyone leaves one day before another, stronger one yelled.
You’re exhausting!!!
His throat felt sore, but even without that achy feeling, Evan didn’t trust his voice to convey enough assurance to reassure his family, so he simply nodded.
“I tried to talk to the Chief, but he refused to listen. He doesn’t want you to be a part of the Austin Fire Department, not just the 126.”
Closing his eyes, Evan put his head in his hands. He couldn’t say he was surprised. He knew that if the truth came out, people would turn their back on him, except for his brother and his dad. But despite his family’s best efforts, they couldn’t go against the Chief’s orders. Now, Evan knew what he had to do. Standing up, the young man looked at his family, a sad smile dancing on his lips. “I’m sorry you had to go through this.” He whispered before shuffling towards the stairs.
Milo stopped playing with T.K. when Evan started walking away and followed him.
Owen’s voice stopped his son at the bottom of the stairs. “We’ll sort something out! I’m not giving up, Evan!”
Looking at his dad, Evan smiled fondly, a single tear rolling down his cheek. “I know you won’t, pops!”
Without waiting for a reply, the duo ascended the stairs and hid in the blond man’s room.
Later that night, locked in his room, Evan lay on his bed, listening to the different sounds in the house, Milo docilely lying beside him. His gaze fixed on his room’s ceiling. He waited for his dad to go to bed and for Tyler to leave the house. When he knew his father had fallen asleep, Evan stood up and took his duffel bag before heading to the door. A hand on the doorknob, the young man mustered all his courage, but a small bark behind him stopped his action. A tired smile spread his lips as he turned around and knelt before Milo, all on four on the bed. The little creature nudged his face with his muzzle, letting out what Evan interpreted as a whine.
Evan put his hand on the puppy’s head and shook his. “You can’t come with me.”
Milo pushed his hand away with his paws and kept whining.
“I need you to stay here. When I’m gone, you’ll have to take care of my dad and Tyler, too. They’ll need you.”
Before Milo’s whimpers reached his aching heart, Evan stood up, kissed the puppy’s head, and left his room. He quietly exited the house and looked around, wondering which road to take. Thinking this was a detail, the blond man took the left lane, but a voice stopped him after a few meters.
“I knew you would do that!”
Tyler!
Turning around, Evan spotted his brother leaning against a car in the right lane, looking at their house. “Then why are you here?”
Pushing himself off the car, Tyler took a step forward. “Why am I here? To stop you, you dumbass!”
“Don’t do this, please!” Evan begged as tears cascaded down his cheeks.
“No! I’m the one supposed to say that!” Tyler replied angrily. “ You don’t get to run away from us when things get tough! That’s what you did in L.A., and look where it led you!”
“You don’t know anything about what I went through there!”
“Sure, I don’t. Because you don’t talk to me! I know you, Evan, and even if I don’t know what led you to sue the LA.F.D., I know you did it because you felt like you were alone in this fight. But you’re not alone here! You have Dad, and me, and even the 126! No one will judge you for what you did!”
“It’s not about being judged! Can’t you see what’s happening? The Chief knew how hard Dad tried to transfer me into the 126! So now, by stopping me from working for the A.F.D., he’s making Dad choose between his life here or me. And I refuse to make him choose! He already sacrificed too much.”
“So you prefer forcing him to lose one of his sons?”
A rictus spread Evan’s lips at the question. “I’ve never been a part of your family.”
Tyler flinched, his heart constricted at his brother’s statement.
“Since I entered your life, I have always felt like an intruder in this family. I only caused you two suffering, whether it was twenty years ago or now. I think it’s better this way.”
Without waiting for an answer, Evan slowly walked backward.
“Evan!” Tyler almost cried out.
The eldest Strand looked one last time at his brother before whispering. “I love you! I love you both more than anything else in this world.” Turning his back on his brother, Evan disappeared into the dark street.
T.K. yelled his brother’s name and continued to call for him until his voice broke. The youngest Strand fell to his knees, body shaken by his uncontrolled sobs.
9-1-1
Wandering the almost empty streets of Austin, hands in his sweater’s pocket, his hood covering his face, Evan kept walking, not really interested in knowing where he would sleep tonight or where he should head now. The only thought that plagued his mind was that everyone seemed better off without him. Part of him regretted what he said to Tyler, but he couldn’t give his brother hope for their family. Evan needed to cut their bond if he wanted them to have a brighter future. Now that he thought about it, he shouldn’t have called his dad or involved him in his troubles. He ended up hurting the ones he loved the most again.
Looking up, Evan recognized the park where he talked to that blonde woman—the same woman who asked him about Christopher. Taking out his phone, he sat on the same bench and looked again at pictures of his Superman and Eddie. Dark thoughts plagued his mind as he gazed at his best friend’s smiley face. What hasn’t he accepted to be a Fire Marshall? Why did he have to push them away? Scoffing, Evan kept lying to himself, arguing he only pushed them away to get back to them afterward. However, this lie stopped working when he saw his team’s crumpled faces after the arbitration. When he thought about it, Evan realized there was only one person he hadn’t hurt—someone who always had his back.
Looking through his contact list, Evan gazed at the name of someone he hadn’t talked to in a long time. His thumb hovered over the name, trembling slightly before he pressed the ‘call’ button. He waited patiently until his call ended straight to voicemail.
Hi, this is Maddison Buckley. I’m sorry I missed your call. If this is urgent, please feel free to text me. I’ll try to respond as soon as possible.
Evan waited for the sound of the tonality and hesitated. His lips trembled. No words seemed to cross the barrier of his lips. Tears kept rolling down his cheeks as he wondered how to start messaging the person he had abandoned without a goodbye.
“Evanitto?” A motherly voice erupted from the shadows.
Jerking from the fright, Evan pressed the hang-up button and erased his tears with the back of his sleeve. Squeezing his eyes, he tried to make out the person walking closer to him.
The dark form stopped a few meters away from him. “Evanitto, is that you?”