New
PATHS
by GCS
Chapter Two
John Gage awoke to the aches and pains from his injuries. He had been injured many times on the job, but he thought nothing had hurt as much as he did right now. The intense ache in his head caused him to be nauseous. Thinking he would call the nurse to request something to ease his suffering he scanned the bed for the call button, but instead his mind wandered to the events that brought him here once again to Rampart General Hospital. They were at a fire bringing out two security guards. He remembered the sudden onslaught of debris raining down on him. The rest was foggy. Where is Roy? Was he hurt? After a few minutes passed he was reminded of the pain that had awoken him earlier. "Ahhh."
Suddenly Johnny realized he wasn't alone. There was a woman sitting beside his bed, and she immediately got to her feet and came up beside the bed. "Johnny are you okay? Do you need me to call the nurse?"
"Uh? Oh man, my head really hurts."
"Okay hun, I'll get the nurse and see if we can get you something. Are you thirsty? There is some ice water here, or I can get you some milk."
Milk, she remembers the milk from the flight. Aw man she probably remembers that I get air sick too. Well at least I didn't puke on her. I wish she hadn't seen me like this. Well she is here though. "Water please," he said in a hoarse whisper. Just as she put the straw to his dry lips the door opened and Dixie McCall, head ER nurse, came into the room to check on her friend.
"Hello Cammie. Hello there tiger. Sorry it took me so long to get here I told the desk nurse to let me know when you were ready for some more pain medicine. I need to get new vitals first," Dixie said as she gently stroked the dark hair from Johnny's forehead in a loving caress. Johnny felt hot and her cool hand felt good against his skin. "I think you may have a bit of a temperature Johnny. You are not going to make this easy on us medical professionals are you tiger?"
"Sorry Dix," he whispered to her.
"Oh I see you are getting a little hoarse there too. Now Johnny Gage, I absolutely forbid you to get pneumonia this time. Do you hear me?" She said as she smiled at her friend. "I know that you have a tendency to do that, but let's not this time. I'll have Dr. Brackett prescribe some antibiotic and we'll see if we can stop that nasty stuff in its tracks." Her next statement was directed at Cammie. "Johnny was hit by a car while on a rescue call a couple of years ago. We had to remove his spleen, and now every time he gets the least little injury he thinks he is supposed to get pneumonia to go along with it." Dixie stepped to the phone on the wall and called Dr. Brackett in his office to explain about Johnny's condition. The doctor told her what medications to administer and for her to let Johnny know that he would be up in a while to check on him. Dixie then called the desk nurse to give her the instructions and request that the medications be brought to the room.
Cammie smiled at the gorgeous man lying in the hospital bed and thought about how dangerous his job is. She also thought how lucky she is that he was on her flight that day, and that she had been asked to work the private medical flight back to LA. Then they had run into each other at her interview for the ER nursing position with Dr. Brackett. He had asked her to his ranch for a picnic. That afternoon with this man was one of the most wonderful times she had ever had. Now here she was visiting him and getting to know the many nice people that called him friend. It was no secret to Cammie why these people cared so deeply for this man. He seemed so caring and friendly and that smile. Wow! She would definitely enjoy getting to know this man better.
She stepped up next to the bed and whispered in his ear. "I'm going to go now Johnny. You will sleep some more after you get your pain meds. I will be out of town tomorrow, but I will be back home the next day. If you are still here I'll come by. If not then I'll wait on you to call me. You do still have my phone number don't you?"
"Uh? I don't…I don't know," he looked at her confused.
"Well why don't you give it to me, and I'll make sure he gets it if he gets to go home before you get back," Dixie offered. She liked this girl and her sisterly protectiveness of Johnny Gage wanted to see him end up with a good woman to take care of him. Maybe Cammie would be that woman.
"Thanks Dix," Johnny smiled up at Cammie. "Guess I'll talk to you in a couple of days. Thanks for coming to see me."
"My pleasure Fireman Gage," she smiled back at him flashing her stunning blue eyes.
Johnny watched as she left the room and then he let out a moan that he could no longer hold back. His ribs hurt, his chest was sore, and his head was killing him.
"Okay Johnny here is something to help you with that pain," Dixie smoothly injected the pain medication into his arm along with the antibiotic. After a few minutes he seemed to relax a bit and sink lower into the pillows. Dixie smoothed the covers over her friend and gently stroked his head. "Alright tiger, everything will be fine now. You just relax and let the medicine do its work. I'll be back in a bit to check on you."
"Okay," was all Johnny could say before he slipped into a blissful sleep.
"Man I can not believe that Gage is in the hospital again," Chet Kelly commented to the group. It just seems like trouble always finds him."
"Johnny just gets injured on the job a lot Chet because he is always the first to volunteer to go into any dangerous situation. I think he wants to protect all of us from possible injury, so he goes instead." Captain Stanley cared deeply for his junior paramedic, and hated to see him at Rampart again.
Hank clapped his hands together and rose from the table. "I had better get home now as you all should. I will see you next shift. Oh and Roy take care of that arm."
The men all headed towards their homes and their families. Except Roy Desoto who wanted to check on his partner one more time. Instead of leaving the hospital with his friends he turned towards the all too familiar ER nurse's desk. "Hey Dix, I thought you would have gone home by now."
"Why Roy Desoto I would have guessed the same thing about you," the head emergency room nurse at Rampart Hospital smiled up at one of her two favorite paramedics. She glanced at the cast on his arm, bandage on his temple and noticed the slight limp when he walked. "You were injured too Roy, and although you were not admitted for observation you need your rest. I can tell you right now if Dr. Brackett sees you wandering around the halls he may change his mind."
"Well I am on my way there now. I just had dinner with the guys, and wanted to check on Johnny one more time."
"I gave him some pain medication and a sedative about 30 minutes ago. Kel was worried that he might not be able to sleep if he spent too much time thinking about how he got here. He will sleep through the night Roy. Go Home." Dixie looked at her friend and noticed the lines of worry that Roy often wore when Johnny was hurt or troubled. "He will be fine tonight. I promise."
"Okay Dixie, I hear ya, but I'll just look in on him for a minute."
"Sure Roy. I'll see you tomorrow. I got off shift 30 minutes ago, and I have a dinner date," the nurse winked at him and slipped from her stool grabbing her purse.
Roy walked quietly into his partner's room and checked the different machines monitoring his friend's vitals. He noticed that Johnny looked relaxed for the first time since they had pulled out of the station before that fateful run. "Sleep well friend. I'll see you tomorrow."
The next morning dawned with Johnny already starting to beg Dr. Brackett to set him free.
"Aw come on Dr. Brackett. Three days? I feel fine. I mean yeah my head hurts some, but I won't over do it. I promise." Johnny pleaded his case with the doctor. "I barely got moved into my new place and really want to go home."
"I am sorry Johnny, but you have started with some kind of infection. You are running a temperature and are still on pain medications. I can not possibly send you home yet. I will agree to monitor the situation. If and I do mean if you are doing better in less time we will see about setting you free," Doctor Brackett stood over his patient with his arms across his chest indicating that he meant what he said.
Johnny slumped further down in his hospital bed, defeated
"Johnny, listen you have been through a building collapse. You have a serious concussion. Your lungs are border line right now from the dust and smoke. You need to rest," Brackett knew he was wasting his time trying to talk Johnny into agreeing but he tried anyway.
Johnny answered by turning his back to the doctor and pulling the bed covers further up around his shoulders. Brackett had seen this child like stubborn side of his friend. He shrugged his shoulders and smiled at Johnny's back as he finished writing in his chart and left the room. "I'll be up to check on you a little later."
"Humph," was the only reply he got.
True to Doctor Brackett's statement Johnny really knew he had developed an infection. His lungs hurt, his head hurt, and he was achy all over, but he had waited a long time to get his own place. His efforts were rewarded with an extra boost from the trust fund from his parents and now he finally had the ranch he had dreamed of for a long time. He could make his parents proud of him by following in their footsteps with a ranch where he could raise horses like his father had taught him. But he had to get out of this hospital and stay out for a while. Thinking of his future and the beautiful woman he had met he drifted off to sleep.
When he awoke several hours later he realized the fever was worse. He was shivering and thirsty. He had been feverish enough to know it was high, probably at least 103. He reached for the call button just as the door opened and Dixie came into the room. "Dix," he barely got her name out of his dry throat.
"What's wrong tiger? You look like you are not feeling very well." She approached his bed and reached to put her hand on his forehead brushing the wet locks of dark unruly hair from his face. I see your fever is up. Let me get a reading then I'll get you some water, okay?" She went about getting his vitals and temperature. "Johnny I told you not to get pneumonia, but you just didn't listen did you precious."
"Guess not Dix," he whispered and was overcome by a coughing fit.
"Easy tiger, I'll call Dr. Brackett to see what we can do to make you feel better."
Medications were changed and others added. He was also started on oxygen. Dr. Brackett hoped that they could get the pneumonia under control without the need for the vent this time. He knew Johnny had been through enough, but then John Gage always made things harder for the medical team at Rampart.
Roy had meant to get back up to the hospital to check on Johnny that day, but his own injuries had left him tired and hurting. He settled for checking in several times by telephone on his friend. Two days after he and Johnny had been injured in the collapse Roy was finally feeling up to making a visit to see his best friend. Arriving at the hospital Roy ran into another old friend.
Roy and Johnny's old high school classmate and one of the paramedic team's former trainees, Gil Robinson came into the emergency room entrance to say hello to their favorite nurse before checking on Johnny. "Hey Dixie," they said in unison as they approached the nurse's desk.
"Hi guys," she said without much enthusiasm.
"Something wrong Dix?" Roy asked.
"Oh your friend Mr. Gage has decided to make things more difficult for our fine medial staff."
"What's wrong with him Dixie?" Roy asked with alarm in his voice. "He seemed okay when I left night before last and when I called about him yesterday."
"Well Roy he has pneumonia….again. So far we are treating him with a stronger round of antibiotics and oxygen therapy, but if his lungs don't start sounding better pretty soon we'll have to move him to ICU and put him on a vent."
"I'm going up to see him. Gil, you coming?"
Dixie could tell that Roy was already beating himself up internally for not getting by the hospital the day before to be with Johnny.
"Let's go," Gil responded.
The two paramedics headed for the elevators that would take them up to their friend's room. Entering Johnny's room Roy noticed that the lights were dim and the shades drawn. Johnny always wanted the shades wide open to let the sun shine in. The darkness of the room told Roy that his friend really did not feel well at all. "Junior, how are you doing?"
Johnny looked up at his friends and cracked a half smile. "Not so good Pally. Hey Gil. Keeping my partner in line for me?"
"Sure Johnny. I'm trying," Gil smiled back.
Johnny's eyes scanned the apparent injuries Roy had suffered in the building collapse. His arm, the bandage on his forehead, and he was limping. Satisfied that his friend was not in too bad of shape he relaxed his own personal assessment.
Knowing that his friend had been checking out his injuries and wanting him to know he was really all right Roy spoke to him, "You need to concentrate on getting better, okay?" Roy patted his friend on the shoulder as he tried to release the worry he knew Johnny had been harboring.
"K," was all Johnny had strength enough to say. He was exhausted and fell back asleep while his friends were still in the room.
"Man he really has it bad this time Roy," Gil said shaking his head in thought.
"He's been through a lot. I hope he doesn't have to be put on a vent. He just hates that."
"Yeah, but wanting to get back to that ranch will do wonders to help him bounce back to the old Johnny Gage we all know and love," Gil smiled at Roy and patted him on the back with a chuckle. "Let's get out of here and let him sleep."
"Okay Gil and thanks for being here for Johnny. You're a good friend."
"Known him too long not to be Roy. They don't come any better than Gage."
As the two men were leaving Johnny's room they ran into Camille Lawson as she was coming out of the elevator. "Hello Roy, I was just going to check on my new friend. Dixie tells me he has developed pneumonia after all."
"Yes, Johnny never does anything the easy way. Cammie this is Gil Robinson a fellow paramedic and long time friend of Johnny and me," Roy introduced the two.
"Well hello there Gil. I am a new friend of the crew of Station 51. I met Johnny on a flight to Montana and got to know the rest of the crew on the flight back. I couldn't help but become friends with them all. They are a great group of people. I am sure we will be fast friends as well," she smiled at Gil as she reached her hand out to shake his hand.
"I'm sure we will," he returned her smile thinking this lady is special. She is friendly and open just like Johnny. No wonder they had become friends after just meeting once or twice.
"See you later Cammie," Roy told his new friend while thinking that he hoped that she and Johnny might have a future together. He liked this woman. He really liked her.
As the men entered the elevator Roy explained to Gil that Cammie had been the stewardess on the two flights. She had been so helpful and friendly helping care for Johnny on the trip home. Roy was amazed at how similar she was to Johnny just as Gil had been. Roy hoped that his best friend had found someone to share his new found happiness with. Only time would tell.
Camille slipped quietly into Johnny's room noticing immediately as Roy had the dim lights and drawn shades. She had learned already that Johnny liked things bright and happy. He seemed to gain energy from the sunshine and his friends. For the shades to be drawn in the middle of the day did more of a statement to his illness than anyone not knowing the man would recognize. She had only known him for a short while, but he was an open book to anyone who cared to spend time with him. He was caring, compassionate, energetic, and beautiful. Cammie knew she was falling for this man and falling hard. She barely knew him, but she was drawn to him like a magnet; his tanned face and dark wavy hair; the chiseled features of his Indian heritage; that smile, that beaming gorgeous smile. "Oh Camille Lawson you have got it bad," she said to herself or so she thought she had been the only one to hear.
"Got what?" She heard him whisper from the bed.
"Well hey sleepy head. I just got in this morning from my last shift and thought I would find you gone home. What are you doing getting sicker instead of out of here?"
"Dunno," he said coughing.
"Sh hush now you don't have to talk Johnny. Here take a sip of this it will help your throat."
He took the offered drink of water and gave his visitor a glimpse of his Gage smile then closed his eyes again in sleep.
"Rest sweetheart, I'll just sit here for a while with you." She settled in the chair beside his bed and watched him sleep. She couldn't keep her hand from stroking the back of his hand. Something about him just called out to her to touch him. Shaking her head she smiled at herself. I am really in trouble here Fireman Gage. I think I am falling in love. She rested her other arm on the bed rail and laid her head on it all the while stroking his hand.
Dixie found Cammie asleep like that a little while later. She smiled at her knew friend. "Cammie," she shook her slightly. "Cammie wake up you will get a sore neck like that."
"Dixie?" Cammie stirred awake. "Oh my, I must have drifted off to sleep. I usually go home for a nap after a long flight. I just meant to stay a few minutes. What time is it?"
She looked over at Johnny to see his sultry brown eyes looking back at her. She wondered how long he had been awake watching her. She smiled at him.
Dixie also saw the unspoken exchange between the two. "Well you came in my emergency room two hours ago and when you did not stop to say goodbye I wondered if I might find you still here. Okay Johnny let's see how that fever is now." She went about getting new vitals and marking the chart. "Looking good tiger, fever is down some."
"Good," Johnny whispered but never broke his gaze at Cammie.
"Well now maybe you can get better and go home so I can come over and bring you dinner," Cammie told him.
"Yeah, sounds good to me," he coughed the words. They had such a good time at the picnic they shared at his ranch a few weeks ago. He thought spending more time with Cammie sounded great.
"Easy Johnny not so fast tiger, your not home free just yet," Dixie was thrilled at the exchange between the two. Maybe she will be the one for him Dixie thought. He deserves some happiness. "Cammie I think you need to go home and get some rest yourself."
"Yes I think you are right Dixie. Fireman Gage, I will check on you later."
"K."
"Johnny I will let Kel know how you are doing. I suspect he will be up in a while to see for himself. You know our good Dr. Brackett. He loves to be in control," she smiled and brushed his hair from his face. "I have to get back to my emergency room now."
The two women went out together leaving Johnny to sleep.
"Camille I need to ask you a favor," Dixie knew she was taking a chance bringing this up so soon, but she cared deeply for John Gage. He had too much heartache in his life to be hurt again if she could help it.
"Camille? This must be serious Dixie. You used my real name not my nickname."
"Look, I know that I may be assuming a lot here, but you have been very attentive to our Johnny after only briefly knowing him. He has suffered a lot in his life. He has been hurt many times. I just don't want to see him hurt again so soon after…." She paused in her comment to gather her thoughts. "I think you are good for him Camille. I can see he really likes you. Please do not lead him on if you are not serious about being his friend."
"Dixie, John Gage is a very lucky man to have the friends he has. I can see he has some vulnerability. I think that is part of what has attracted me to him; that along with his honesty and openness. How could anyone not be attracted to him? I have to be honest with you. I do not know exactly what I expect, but I think I am falling in love with him and I barely know him. I do not intend to hurt him," she smiled at her new friend. "I can only hope that he may someday feel the same way about me. We will have to give it some time to find out when he is better."
"Thank you Cammie for being honest with me. I am sorry if I butted in where I don't belong. Johnny is very important to me. He saved my life once. I guess I have been there to help save his too."
"No need to apologize Dixie." The two women hugged in the elevator knowing they would be good friends from now on no matter what happened between Cammie and Johnny. "I would like to spend some time getting to know you better as well. Could we do dinner sometime?"
"Well how about right now. I know a quaint little cafeteria that has pretty good food, and I have my dinner break coming up."
"That would be very nice. Lead the way."
The two women quickly made their way through the line at the hospital cafeteria and found a table in the corner where they could talk freely.
"Dixie can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"It has been a little over two weeks since I interviewed with Dr. Brackett. Do you know if he has filled the nursing position?"
"No he hasn't. Truthfully he is fighting with the hospital board over the budget trying to get the additional funding to support the needed nursing staff. Don't worry Cammie, he knows you. He always requests you on any medical flights that he is involved in." Dixie did her best to assure the woman.
"Well I know that it has been a while since I spent time working in an emergency setting, but I did work in the ER back home for several years. I would love the opportunity to work here."
"Cammie I answered your question, now it is my turn. I would like to know why you have decided to give up being a stewardess and go back to nursing?"
"Dixie, I have to tell you. I feel like I have missed a lot of opportunities to find a lasting relationship, because I am always traveling. My parents were very happily married. I want to have that in my life, but I don't see that happening as long as I am flying in and out of town all week long. I am ready to settle down and begin to live. Truthfully I have been thinking about making the change for a long time. It wasn't until I met Johnny on his trip to Montana that I finally decided that I needed to give myself a chance to find what I was looking for. I have dated around a lot. Most of the men I have dated were only looking for a good time. I don't want that. I always seem to get dumped after a couple of dates since I won't sleep with everyone I go out with. After a while I started thinking something was wrong with me."
Dixie could not help but smile at her new friend thinking that her dating experience sounded a lot like that sick fireman upstairs.
"I am looking for a man that I can be friends with first. You know get to know them before getting too serious. I don't really like discos or bars. I go there sometimes to hear live bands, but what I really like is a fun bowling game or going on a hike in the woods with a picnic lunch. I love to get away from the city and go camping. I absolutely adore the beach, but mostly early in the morning before the crowds get there. I could sit and count the stars for hours. Most guys think that is such a drag that they don't call me back after the second date."
"Oh Cammie, you are a lovely woman. You shouldn't give in to anyone just to have a date. The things you value are important. We women are often faced with the shallow thoughts of men who only want a good time. Truthfully there are just as many young female nurses here that are just that way. Our friend John Gage has had his share of dating failures, because the nurses he dates think that as a fireman he will be daring and exciting to date. That he will take them to the hottest dance clubs and then well they want him to take them to bed. John Gage is a very loyal man who prefers the quiet simple things in life. His job is exciting enough that when he is off shift he wants to find peace. He also loves to camp and hike. He spends a lot of time bowling with his friends from the fire station, but most importantly to my knowledge John Gage does not sleep around. I think that may be the main reason he gets dumped so often. I am sure you have noticed what a good looking man he is. Many women think that because he is so good looking that he is also a ladies man. That is far from the truth. The real John Gage is anything but a ladies man. Oh yes he is confident in his profession, he and his partner are two of the best paramedics ever to come out of the program here. He is a proficient firefighter and rescue man too, but when it comes to his personal life he is shy. Johnny wants more out of a relationship than a one night stand. He wants someone he can come home to after a bad shift that will help him remember why he does what he does; someone to give him support in his profession; someone who will understand that he gets hurt because he has to do everything in his power to get everyone out of bad situations safely including his crew mates especially his best friend Roy Desoto. You just keep looking for the right man Cammie and one day he will be standing right in front of you."
The two women chatted over their desert and coffee. Meanwhile the topic of their conversation lay upstairs in his hospital bed having a bad dream about the fire that brought him once again to Rampart.
The station was called out to a burning structure in a business complex. Arriving on the scene Captain Stanley was immediately approached by a man in a security officer's uniform. The man told Stanley that his two security officers had been checking the offices on the third floor when the fire broke out. The fire was currently out of control. Captain Stanley hated to send his men into the building. He knew it was unstable. "Johnny, Roy get your gear."
They had come running up beside their Captain as they pulled on their air masks. "There are two missing security guards on the third floor not sure which office. You need to make a quick sweep, in and out. That building is very unstable and the fire is not yet under control. Got it?"
"Got it Cap," Roy responded. "Come on Johnny."
They had searched all but two of the offices on the third floor when Captain Stanley could be heard calling them from the HT in Roy's turnout coat pocket. Pulling off his mask Roy had answered their Captain. "HT 51 to Engine 51."
"What's your status HT 51?"
"Two offices to go Cap."
"Negative Roy it's too unstable. Abandon search. I repeat abandon the search and get out now."
Roy looked over at him and he shook his head. "I'll take the last office Roy. You get that one. We'll be out in a few minutes. They have to be in one of them."
Roy had nodded his head in agreement. The two friends set out to finish their search. Roy came back out of the office that he had searched empty handed. He felt uneasy about the situation and headed towards the last office where his partner had gone. "Roy in here I found them," Johnny remembered calling out to his partner.
The memories of the accident that had put him in the hospital were distressing to Johnny. His head thrashed from side to side. He knew that the ceiling would be falling down on him and Roy any second. He didn't want to remember how that felt. He didn't want to remember that they almost lost their victims because he hadn't been fast enough to get them out sooner. He failed those security guards and his partner.
Once in the office Captain Stanley could be heard yelling into the HT. "Desoto! Gage! Report your status. Get out! Get out of there now!"
Johnny knew they would be in trouble for disobeying orders from their captain, but wouldn't he be glad they found these men? Roy hoisted the larger man onto his shoulder in a fireman's carry while Johnny had struggled to get the other man over his own shoulder. Together they moved into the hall and towards the stairs that would lead them out. Just as they were nearing the staircase they felt the tremble in the structure. "Hurry Johnny, it's gonna go any minute."
"Right behind you Pally."
They started down the stairs just as the rumbling and trembling structure came down all around them. His helmet had come off…again and a large ceiling support beam crashed down on his head. He saw stars. Trying to hold onto the injured man on his shoulders and continue down the stairs he lost his footing and the group of four men tumbled down the flight of stairs. He remembered coming to a stop on the landing in a heap with the others. The debris continued to rain down on the fallen men. Darkness fell on him. He didn't remember how they had gotten them out or if the guard he had been carrying was injured worse or not. He only remembered fighting unsuccessfully to stay awake. Looking for his best friend amongst the rubble, but not being able to see him through his blurred vision and the pain, the excruciating pain he felt in his head and then blackness.
The distraught fever ravaged man tossed and turned in the bed moaning. His arms reached out for something, but what was he reaching for. "Unnn. Ohhh." His breaths were rapid and shallow. "Hurry, Go." He yelled into the emptiness of his room. "Watch out Roy it's coming down!"
Dixie and Cammie heard the yelling coming from Johnny's room as they came off the elevator. They hurried into his room to find him thrashing about in the bed. Dixie reached for the call button and requested Dr. Brackett be paged. Cammie went to the bathroom to get a cool damp cloth and began wiping Johnny's face and whispered soothingly to him. He stopped yelling and his breathing slowed a little, but he was still breathlessly moaning when Dr. Brackett came in. Dixie had been getting new vitals and pulled the thermometer from his armpit where she had been getting an auxiliary temperature reading. "BP 110 over 89, pulse 124, respirations 35 and labored, temperature 103.2," she stated as she wrote the information in the chart.
"Well Johnny you insist on making this hard," Dr. Brackett handed the chart to Dixie with the new notes he had made describing the change in medications to try to get Johnny's temperature down and his labored breathing under control. He was also watching the way that Cammie administered care to the very sick man.
She continued to bathe his face and arms with the damp cloth and talked soothingly to the man. Dr. Brackett noticed that Johnny had opened his eyes and seemed to be searching the room for something or someone. "Dixie, I thing we need to give Roy a call. He is the next of kin, and we may be headed for the vent before the day is done."
"Okay Kel, I'll call him now."
Johnny knew that someone was talking to him, but all he could really hear was the constant buzzing noise in his ears. For some reason he didn't understand he was drawn to the voice. A short time later Roy joined Cammie beside Johnny's bed. "He finally relaxed enough to rest easy. I don't know what he was dreaming about, but it upset him a lot." Cammie looked into Roy's eyes with worried eyes of her own. Roy saw the caring in her eyes. He knew this woman was getting serious about his best friend and that pleased him greatly. "Do you have any idea what has him so upset?"
"I am pretty sure he was remembering the accident. He may not remember that we got the victims out safely. They survived with a fighting chance because Johnny would not give up the search even when we were ordered out. I'll talk to him when he wakes up again. Cammie, if you need to leave I'm here now."
"No Roy I couldn't possibly leave right now. Not until I know what is happening with Johnny."
Roy pulled over the chair from the other side of the room and placed it beside the one Cammie now sat in. She didn't take her eyes off the sleeping man. Roy settled in the chair for the long night. He wouldn't leave his best friend's side until he too knew what was happening with Johnny. Roy and Cammie sat in silence on their self inflicted vigil watching over their friend.
"You know Roy, I think he is an amazing man, and I hope that you don't mind if I try to get to know him better. I know he values your opinion, so if you have no objections then I will be around a lot." She smiled at Roy.
"Johnny is a grown man. He dates who he chooses to date, but in fact Cammie I think it would be nice for you and Johnny to get to know each other better. He is a good man you know."
"I can see that he is, especially if his choice in friends is any indication of who he really is."
Just when the two finished talking Johnny started thrashing in the bed in a fevered fit. Roy took his friend's hand and talked to him. "Johnny the guards are all right. We got them out. You can relax now. I'm here. I'm okay. Take it easy Junior." Johnny relaxed under Roy's instructions and he rested quietly again.
Several hours later Cammie was resting her head on the side of Johnny's bed and Roy was reclining in the chair with his feet propped up on the end of the bed. That is where they were when Johnny's fever broke and he woke up to find them there. When he stirred in the bed both of his friends jerked awake. "Johnny are you okay?" Roy asked.
"Thirsty."
"Here Johnny have some ice water." Cammie lifted the straw to his lips.
"Thanks," he whispered.
Roy pressed the call button and asked for Dr. Brackett to be paged.
A short time later Dr. Brackett and Dixie McCall came into the room.
"How is he Roy?" Brackett asked as he approached the bed. He could see that Johnny looked better. "Well welcome back Mr. Gage. Let me check your lungs. Dixie can you get his vitals?"
"Sure Kel."
"Well Johnny I think the antibiotics are doing their job. Looks like you may have avoided the vent this time."
"Good."
"You may still get out of here in a couple of days as we originally thought, but we will take it one day at a time okay?"
"Yeah Doc Thanks," he whispered as he looked over at Roy and then Cammie. His eyes rested on the beautiful blue eyes looking back at him and he fell into a restful sleep.
Roy and Cammie both agreed to go home since Johnny was better, but they both knew they would be back again after a few hours of their own rest. Cammie had another flight the next afternoon and wanted to see Johnny before she left.
The next morning was cloudy and the weather forecast predicted a bad thunderstorm. Arriving at the hospital in her stewardess uniform, Cammie stopped by to see Dixie before going up to visit with Johnny. "Good morning Dixie."
"Well good morning to you too. My you look nice in your uniform."
"Thank you, but I hope to be trading it in for a white one soon."
"I hope that wish comes true for you Cammie. If things don't work out here then you should try some of the other hospitals in the area. You will make a wonderful ER nurse."
"Well I was on my way up to visit Fireman Gage."
"Cammie why do you call him 'Fireman Gage'?"
"Oh I think it's cute. That is how he first introduced himself to me. I guess you might say I am kind of teasing him, but I don't know if he knows it yet." She smiled at the nurse. "I had better get up there before I have to report to the airport."
When Cammie reached for the handle of the door to Johnny's room she could hear that he was talking to someone.
"Cap I don't know I just….she's well….kinda special…I think. I really want to…ya know get to know her better."
"Well John that's good. I like her. She seems like a really nice woman."
"Thanks Cap."
Cammie didn't know what to think. Could he be talking to his Captain about her, or did he have another woman that he was interested in. She was afraid to find out the answer to that question. Deciding that it must be some other woman Cammie turned and headed towards the stair well instead of going into his room. She had tears in her eyes. Dixie had seen the woman rush away from Johnny's room and wondered what had happened. She could also hear Johnny and Hank Stanley talking through the door to the room. They were obviously discussing something important to Johnny and it sounded like it involved a certain woman. Dixie wondered if Cammie thought they were talking about someone besides her. Thinking to herself that she needed to get in touch with her new friend and make sure she understood that John Gage might also be falling for her Dixie headed for the telephone at the nurse's desk to call the medical flight service and try to find out how to get in touch with Cammie before she boarded the flight she was assigned to. Unfortunately the flight had taken off before Dixie could get through on the number the service had given her.
By the time Cammie's flight took off the storm was raging. The Air Traffic Control Tower had almost grounded all flights, but hers had gotten permission to take off before that happened. After a short time in the air the storm worsened. The plane jolted from the winds and lightning struck the nose of the aircraft. The pilots and stewardesses did everything they could to calm the passengers. They were barely outside of Los Angeles when the aircraft went down.
Johnny was watching the news in his hospital room when the initial report came across. He recognized the name of the airline immediately. He knew that Cammie had a flight that day, because when he had asked Dixie if she knew where she was he had been informed that she was working. He could not believe his ears when the names of the crew were announced. She was on the downed plane. They had gone down in a wooded area and a rescue operation was underway. Finally he had met someone that he thought he might could really fall in love with, and he may very well have lost her forever in the blink of an eye.
Suddenly Johnny realized he wasn't alone. There was a woman sitting beside his bed, and she immediately got to her feet and came up beside the bed. "Johnny are you okay? Do you need me to call the nurse?"
"Uh? Oh man, my head really hurts."
"Okay hun, I'll get the nurse and see if we can get you something. Are you thirsty? There is some ice water here, or I can get you some milk."
Milk, she remembers the milk from the flight. Aw man she probably remembers that I get air sick too. Well at least I didn't puke on her. I wish she hadn't seen me like this. Well she is here though. "Water please," he said in a hoarse whisper. Just as she put the straw to his dry lips the door opened and Dixie McCall, head ER nurse, came into the room to check on her friend.
"Hello Cammie. Hello there tiger. Sorry it took me so long to get here I told the desk nurse to let me know when you were ready for some more pain medicine. I need to get new vitals first," Dixie said as she gently stroked the dark hair from Johnny's forehead in a loving caress. Johnny felt hot and her cool hand felt good against his skin. "I think you may have a bit of a temperature Johnny. You are not going to make this easy on us medical professionals are you tiger?"
"Sorry Dix," he whispered to her.
"Oh I see you are getting a little hoarse there too. Now Johnny Gage, I absolutely forbid you to get pneumonia this time. Do you hear me?" She said as she smiled at her friend. "I know that you have a tendency to do that, but let's not this time. I'll have Dr. Brackett prescribe some antibiotic and we'll see if we can stop that nasty stuff in its tracks." Her next statement was directed at Cammie. "Johnny was hit by a car while on a rescue call a couple of years ago. We had to remove his spleen, and now every time he gets the least little injury he thinks he is supposed to get pneumonia to go along with it." Dixie stepped to the phone on the wall and called Dr. Brackett in his office to explain about Johnny's condition. The doctor told her what medications to administer and for her to let Johnny know that he would be up in a while to check on him. Dixie then called the desk nurse to give her the instructions and request that the medications be brought to the room.
Cammie smiled at the gorgeous man lying in the hospital bed and thought about how dangerous his job is. She also thought how lucky she is that he was on her flight that day, and that she had been asked to work the private medical flight back to LA. Then they had run into each other at her interview for the ER nursing position with Dr. Brackett. He had asked her to his ranch for a picnic. That afternoon with this man was one of the most wonderful times she had ever had. Now here she was visiting him and getting to know the many nice people that called him friend. It was no secret to Cammie why these people cared so deeply for this man. He seemed so caring and friendly and that smile. Wow! She would definitely enjoy getting to know this man better.
She stepped up next to the bed and whispered in his ear. "I'm going to go now Johnny. You will sleep some more after you get your pain meds. I will be out of town tomorrow, but I will be back home the next day. If you are still here I'll come by. If not then I'll wait on you to call me. You do still have my phone number don't you?"
"Uh? I don't…I don't know," he looked at her confused.
"Well why don't you give it to me, and I'll make sure he gets it if he gets to go home before you get back," Dixie offered. She liked this girl and her sisterly protectiveness of Johnny Gage wanted to see him end up with a good woman to take care of him. Maybe Cammie would be that woman.
"Thanks Dix," Johnny smiled up at Cammie. "Guess I'll talk to you in a couple of days. Thanks for coming to see me."
"My pleasure Fireman Gage," she smiled back at him flashing her stunning blue eyes.
Johnny watched as she left the room and then he let out a moan that he could no longer hold back. His ribs hurt, his chest was sore, and his head was killing him.
"Okay Johnny here is something to help you with that pain," Dixie smoothly injected the pain medication into his arm along with the antibiotic. After a few minutes he seemed to relax a bit and sink lower into the pillows. Dixie smoothed the covers over her friend and gently stroked his head. "Alright tiger, everything will be fine now. You just relax and let the medicine do its work. I'll be back in a bit to check on you."
"Okay," was all Johnny could say before he slipped into a blissful sleep.
"Man I can not believe that Gage is in the hospital again," Chet Kelly commented to the group. It just seems like trouble always finds him."
"Johnny just gets injured on the job a lot Chet because he is always the first to volunteer to go into any dangerous situation. I think he wants to protect all of us from possible injury, so he goes instead." Captain Stanley cared deeply for his junior paramedic, and hated to see him at Rampart again.
Hank clapped his hands together and rose from the table. "I had better get home now as you all should. I will see you next shift. Oh and Roy take care of that arm."
The men all headed towards their homes and their families. Except Roy Desoto who wanted to check on his partner one more time. Instead of leaving the hospital with his friends he turned towards the all too familiar ER nurse's desk. "Hey Dix, I thought you would have gone home by now."
"Why Roy Desoto I would have guessed the same thing about you," the head emergency room nurse at Rampart Hospital smiled up at one of her two favorite paramedics. She glanced at the cast on his arm, bandage on his temple and noticed the slight limp when he walked. "You were injured too Roy, and although you were not admitted for observation you need your rest. I can tell you right now if Dr. Brackett sees you wandering around the halls he may change his mind."
"Well I am on my way there now. I just had dinner with the guys, and wanted to check on Johnny one more time."
"I gave him some pain medication and a sedative about 30 minutes ago. Kel was worried that he might not be able to sleep if he spent too much time thinking about how he got here. He will sleep through the night Roy. Go Home." Dixie looked at her friend and noticed the lines of worry that Roy often wore when Johnny was hurt or troubled. "He will be fine tonight. I promise."
"Okay Dixie, I hear ya, but I'll just look in on him for a minute."
"Sure Roy. I'll see you tomorrow. I got off shift 30 minutes ago, and I have a dinner date," the nurse winked at him and slipped from her stool grabbing her purse.
Roy walked quietly into his partner's room and checked the different machines monitoring his friend's vitals. He noticed that Johnny looked relaxed for the first time since they had pulled out of the station before that fateful run. "Sleep well friend. I'll see you tomorrow."
The next morning dawned with Johnny already starting to beg Dr. Brackett to set him free.
"Aw come on Dr. Brackett. Three days? I feel fine. I mean yeah my head hurts some, but I won't over do it. I promise." Johnny pleaded his case with the doctor. "I barely got moved into my new place and really want to go home."
"I am sorry Johnny, but you have started with some kind of infection. You are running a temperature and are still on pain medications. I can not possibly send you home yet. I will agree to monitor the situation. If and I do mean if you are doing better in less time we will see about setting you free," Doctor Brackett stood over his patient with his arms across his chest indicating that he meant what he said.
Johnny slumped further down in his hospital bed, defeated
"Johnny, listen you have been through a building collapse. You have a serious concussion. Your lungs are border line right now from the dust and smoke. You need to rest," Brackett knew he was wasting his time trying to talk Johnny into agreeing but he tried anyway.
Johnny answered by turning his back to the doctor and pulling the bed covers further up around his shoulders. Brackett had seen this child like stubborn side of his friend. He shrugged his shoulders and smiled at Johnny's back as he finished writing in his chart and left the room. "I'll be up to check on you a little later."
"Humph," was the only reply he got.
True to Doctor Brackett's statement Johnny really knew he had developed an infection. His lungs hurt, his head hurt, and he was achy all over, but he had waited a long time to get his own place. His efforts were rewarded with an extra boost from the trust fund from his parents and now he finally had the ranch he had dreamed of for a long time. He could make his parents proud of him by following in their footsteps with a ranch where he could raise horses like his father had taught him. But he had to get out of this hospital and stay out for a while. Thinking of his future and the beautiful woman he had met he drifted off to sleep.
When he awoke several hours later he realized the fever was worse. He was shivering and thirsty. He had been feverish enough to know it was high, probably at least 103. He reached for the call button just as the door opened and Dixie came into the room. "Dix," he barely got her name out of his dry throat.
"What's wrong tiger? You look like you are not feeling very well." She approached his bed and reached to put her hand on his forehead brushing the wet locks of dark unruly hair from his face. I see your fever is up. Let me get a reading then I'll get you some water, okay?" She went about getting his vitals and temperature. "Johnny I told you not to get pneumonia, but you just didn't listen did you precious."
"Guess not Dix," he whispered and was overcome by a coughing fit.
"Easy tiger, I'll call Dr. Brackett to see what we can do to make you feel better."
Medications were changed and others added. He was also started on oxygen. Dr. Brackett hoped that they could get the pneumonia under control without the need for the vent this time. He knew Johnny had been through enough, but then John Gage always made things harder for the medical team at Rampart.
Roy had meant to get back up to the hospital to check on Johnny that day, but his own injuries had left him tired and hurting. He settled for checking in several times by telephone on his friend. Two days after he and Johnny had been injured in the collapse Roy was finally feeling up to making a visit to see his best friend. Arriving at the hospital Roy ran into another old friend.
Roy and Johnny's old high school classmate and one of the paramedic team's former trainees, Gil Robinson came into the emergency room entrance to say hello to their favorite nurse before checking on Johnny. "Hey Dixie," they said in unison as they approached the nurse's desk.
"Hi guys," she said without much enthusiasm.
"Something wrong Dix?" Roy asked.
"Oh your friend Mr. Gage has decided to make things more difficult for our fine medial staff."
"What's wrong with him Dixie?" Roy asked with alarm in his voice. "He seemed okay when I left night before last and when I called about him yesterday."
"Well Roy he has pneumonia….again. So far we are treating him with a stronger round of antibiotics and oxygen therapy, but if his lungs don't start sounding better pretty soon we'll have to move him to ICU and put him on a vent."
"I'm going up to see him. Gil, you coming?"
Dixie could tell that Roy was already beating himself up internally for not getting by the hospital the day before to be with Johnny.
"Let's go," Gil responded.
The two paramedics headed for the elevators that would take them up to their friend's room. Entering Johnny's room Roy noticed that the lights were dim and the shades drawn. Johnny always wanted the shades wide open to let the sun shine in. The darkness of the room told Roy that his friend really did not feel well at all. "Junior, how are you doing?"
Johnny looked up at his friends and cracked a half smile. "Not so good Pally. Hey Gil. Keeping my partner in line for me?"
"Sure Johnny. I'm trying," Gil smiled back.
Johnny's eyes scanned the apparent injuries Roy had suffered in the building collapse. His arm, the bandage on his forehead, and he was limping. Satisfied that his friend was not in too bad of shape he relaxed his own personal assessment.
Knowing that his friend had been checking out his injuries and wanting him to know he was really all right Roy spoke to him, "You need to concentrate on getting better, okay?" Roy patted his friend on the shoulder as he tried to release the worry he knew Johnny had been harboring.
"K," was all Johnny had strength enough to say. He was exhausted and fell back asleep while his friends were still in the room.
"Man he really has it bad this time Roy," Gil said shaking his head in thought.
"He's been through a lot. I hope he doesn't have to be put on a vent. He just hates that."
"Yeah, but wanting to get back to that ranch will do wonders to help him bounce back to the old Johnny Gage we all know and love," Gil smiled at Roy and patted him on the back with a chuckle. "Let's get out of here and let him sleep."
"Okay Gil and thanks for being here for Johnny. You're a good friend."
"Known him too long not to be Roy. They don't come any better than Gage."
As the two men were leaving Johnny's room they ran into Camille Lawson as she was coming out of the elevator. "Hello Roy, I was just going to check on my new friend. Dixie tells me he has developed pneumonia after all."
"Yes, Johnny never does anything the easy way. Cammie this is Gil Robinson a fellow paramedic and long time friend of Johnny and me," Roy introduced the two.
"Well hello there Gil. I am a new friend of the crew of Station 51. I met Johnny on a flight to Montana and got to know the rest of the crew on the flight back. I couldn't help but become friends with them all. They are a great group of people. I am sure we will be fast friends as well," she smiled at Gil as she reached her hand out to shake his hand.
"I'm sure we will," he returned her smile thinking this lady is special. She is friendly and open just like Johnny. No wonder they had become friends after just meeting once or twice.
"See you later Cammie," Roy told his new friend while thinking that he hoped that she and Johnny might have a future together. He liked this woman. He really liked her.
As the men entered the elevator Roy explained to Gil that Cammie had been the stewardess on the two flights. She had been so helpful and friendly helping care for Johnny on the trip home. Roy was amazed at how similar she was to Johnny just as Gil had been. Roy hoped that his best friend had found someone to share his new found happiness with. Only time would tell.
Camille slipped quietly into Johnny's room noticing immediately as Roy had the dim lights and drawn shades. She had learned already that Johnny liked things bright and happy. He seemed to gain energy from the sunshine and his friends. For the shades to be drawn in the middle of the day did more of a statement to his illness than anyone not knowing the man would recognize. She had only known him for a short while, but he was an open book to anyone who cared to spend time with him. He was caring, compassionate, energetic, and beautiful. Cammie knew she was falling for this man and falling hard. She barely knew him, but she was drawn to him like a magnet; his tanned face and dark wavy hair; the chiseled features of his Indian heritage; that smile, that beaming gorgeous smile. "Oh Camille Lawson you have got it bad," she said to herself or so she thought she had been the only one to hear.
"Got what?" She heard him whisper from the bed.
"Well hey sleepy head. I just got in this morning from my last shift and thought I would find you gone home. What are you doing getting sicker instead of out of here?"
"Dunno," he said coughing.
"Sh hush now you don't have to talk Johnny. Here take a sip of this it will help your throat."
He took the offered drink of water and gave his visitor a glimpse of his Gage smile then closed his eyes again in sleep.
"Rest sweetheart, I'll just sit here for a while with you." She settled in the chair beside his bed and watched him sleep. She couldn't keep her hand from stroking the back of his hand. Something about him just called out to her to touch him. Shaking her head she smiled at herself. I am really in trouble here Fireman Gage. I think I am falling in love. She rested her other arm on the bed rail and laid her head on it all the while stroking his hand.
Dixie found Cammie asleep like that a little while later. She smiled at her knew friend. "Cammie," she shook her slightly. "Cammie wake up you will get a sore neck like that."
"Dixie?" Cammie stirred awake. "Oh my, I must have drifted off to sleep. I usually go home for a nap after a long flight. I just meant to stay a few minutes. What time is it?"
She looked over at Johnny to see his sultry brown eyes looking back at her. She wondered how long he had been awake watching her. She smiled at him.
Dixie also saw the unspoken exchange between the two. "Well you came in my emergency room two hours ago and when you did not stop to say goodbye I wondered if I might find you still here. Okay Johnny let's see how that fever is now." She went about getting new vitals and marking the chart. "Looking good tiger, fever is down some."
"Good," Johnny whispered but never broke his gaze at Cammie.
"Well now maybe you can get better and go home so I can come over and bring you dinner," Cammie told him.
"Yeah, sounds good to me," he coughed the words. They had such a good time at the picnic they shared at his ranch a few weeks ago. He thought spending more time with Cammie sounded great.
"Easy Johnny not so fast tiger, your not home free just yet," Dixie was thrilled at the exchange between the two. Maybe she will be the one for him Dixie thought. He deserves some happiness. "Cammie I think you need to go home and get some rest yourself."
"Yes I think you are right Dixie. Fireman Gage, I will check on you later."
"K."
"Johnny I will let Kel know how you are doing. I suspect he will be up in a while to see for himself. You know our good Dr. Brackett. He loves to be in control," she smiled and brushed his hair from his face. "I have to get back to my emergency room now."
The two women went out together leaving Johnny to sleep.
"Camille I need to ask you a favor," Dixie knew she was taking a chance bringing this up so soon, but she cared deeply for John Gage. He had too much heartache in his life to be hurt again if she could help it.
"Camille? This must be serious Dixie. You used my real name not my nickname."
"Look, I know that I may be assuming a lot here, but you have been very attentive to our Johnny after only briefly knowing him. He has suffered a lot in his life. He has been hurt many times. I just don't want to see him hurt again so soon after…." She paused in her comment to gather her thoughts. "I think you are good for him Camille. I can see he really likes you. Please do not lead him on if you are not serious about being his friend."
"Dixie, John Gage is a very lucky man to have the friends he has. I can see he has some vulnerability. I think that is part of what has attracted me to him; that along with his honesty and openness. How could anyone not be attracted to him? I have to be honest with you. I do not know exactly what I expect, but I think I am falling in love with him and I barely know him. I do not intend to hurt him," she smiled at her new friend. "I can only hope that he may someday feel the same way about me. We will have to give it some time to find out when he is better."
"Thank you Cammie for being honest with me. I am sorry if I butted in where I don't belong. Johnny is very important to me. He saved my life once. I guess I have been there to help save his too."
"No need to apologize Dixie." The two women hugged in the elevator knowing they would be good friends from now on no matter what happened between Cammie and Johnny. "I would like to spend some time getting to know you better as well. Could we do dinner sometime?"
"Well how about right now. I know a quaint little cafeteria that has pretty good food, and I have my dinner break coming up."
"That would be very nice. Lead the way."
The two women quickly made their way through the line at the hospital cafeteria and found a table in the corner where they could talk freely.
"Dixie can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"It has been a little over two weeks since I interviewed with Dr. Brackett. Do you know if he has filled the nursing position?"
"No he hasn't. Truthfully he is fighting with the hospital board over the budget trying to get the additional funding to support the needed nursing staff. Don't worry Cammie, he knows you. He always requests you on any medical flights that he is involved in." Dixie did her best to assure the woman.
"Well I know that it has been a while since I spent time working in an emergency setting, but I did work in the ER back home for several years. I would love the opportunity to work here."
"Cammie I answered your question, now it is my turn. I would like to know why you have decided to give up being a stewardess and go back to nursing?"
"Dixie, I have to tell you. I feel like I have missed a lot of opportunities to find a lasting relationship, because I am always traveling. My parents were very happily married. I want to have that in my life, but I don't see that happening as long as I am flying in and out of town all week long. I am ready to settle down and begin to live. Truthfully I have been thinking about making the change for a long time. It wasn't until I met Johnny on his trip to Montana that I finally decided that I needed to give myself a chance to find what I was looking for. I have dated around a lot. Most of the men I have dated were only looking for a good time. I don't want that. I always seem to get dumped after a couple of dates since I won't sleep with everyone I go out with. After a while I started thinking something was wrong with me."
Dixie could not help but smile at her new friend thinking that her dating experience sounded a lot like that sick fireman upstairs.
"I am looking for a man that I can be friends with first. You know get to know them before getting too serious. I don't really like discos or bars. I go there sometimes to hear live bands, but what I really like is a fun bowling game or going on a hike in the woods with a picnic lunch. I love to get away from the city and go camping. I absolutely adore the beach, but mostly early in the morning before the crowds get there. I could sit and count the stars for hours. Most guys think that is such a drag that they don't call me back after the second date."
"Oh Cammie, you are a lovely woman. You shouldn't give in to anyone just to have a date. The things you value are important. We women are often faced with the shallow thoughts of men who only want a good time. Truthfully there are just as many young female nurses here that are just that way. Our friend John Gage has had his share of dating failures, because the nurses he dates think that as a fireman he will be daring and exciting to date. That he will take them to the hottest dance clubs and then well they want him to take them to bed. John Gage is a very loyal man who prefers the quiet simple things in life. His job is exciting enough that when he is off shift he wants to find peace. He also loves to camp and hike. He spends a lot of time bowling with his friends from the fire station, but most importantly to my knowledge John Gage does not sleep around. I think that may be the main reason he gets dumped so often. I am sure you have noticed what a good looking man he is. Many women think that because he is so good looking that he is also a ladies man. That is far from the truth. The real John Gage is anything but a ladies man. Oh yes he is confident in his profession, he and his partner are two of the best paramedics ever to come out of the program here. He is a proficient firefighter and rescue man too, but when it comes to his personal life he is shy. Johnny wants more out of a relationship than a one night stand. He wants someone he can come home to after a bad shift that will help him remember why he does what he does; someone to give him support in his profession; someone who will understand that he gets hurt because he has to do everything in his power to get everyone out of bad situations safely including his crew mates especially his best friend Roy Desoto. You just keep looking for the right man Cammie and one day he will be standing right in front of you."
The two women chatted over their desert and coffee. Meanwhile the topic of their conversation lay upstairs in his hospital bed having a bad dream about the fire that brought him once again to Rampart.
The station was called out to a burning structure in a business complex. Arriving on the scene Captain Stanley was immediately approached by a man in a security officer's uniform. The man told Stanley that his two security officers had been checking the offices on the third floor when the fire broke out. The fire was currently out of control. Captain Stanley hated to send his men into the building. He knew it was unstable. "Johnny, Roy get your gear."
They had come running up beside their Captain as they pulled on their air masks. "There are two missing security guards on the third floor not sure which office. You need to make a quick sweep, in and out. That building is very unstable and the fire is not yet under control. Got it?"
"Got it Cap," Roy responded. "Come on Johnny."
They had searched all but two of the offices on the third floor when Captain Stanley could be heard calling them from the HT in Roy's turnout coat pocket. Pulling off his mask Roy had answered their Captain. "HT 51 to Engine 51."
"What's your status HT 51?"
"Two offices to go Cap."
"Negative Roy it's too unstable. Abandon search. I repeat abandon the search and get out now."
Roy looked over at him and he shook his head. "I'll take the last office Roy. You get that one. We'll be out in a few minutes. They have to be in one of them."
Roy had nodded his head in agreement. The two friends set out to finish their search. Roy came back out of the office that he had searched empty handed. He felt uneasy about the situation and headed towards the last office where his partner had gone. "Roy in here I found them," Johnny remembered calling out to his partner.
The memories of the accident that had put him in the hospital were distressing to Johnny. His head thrashed from side to side. He knew that the ceiling would be falling down on him and Roy any second. He didn't want to remember how that felt. He didn't want to remember that they almost lost their victims because he hadn't been fast enough to get them out sooner. He failed those security guards and his partner.
Once in the office Captain Stanley could be heard yelling into the HT. "Desoto! Gage! Report your status. Get out! Get out of there now!"
Johnny knew they would be in trouble for disobeying orders from their captain, but wouldn't he be glad they found these men? Roy hoisted the larger man onto his shoulder in a fireman's carry while Johnny had struggled to get the other man over his own shoulder. Together they moved into the hall and towards the stairs that would lead them out. Just as they were nearing the staircase they felt the tremble in the structure. "Hurry Johnny, it's gonna go any minute."
"Right behind you Pally."
They started down the stairs just as the rumbling and trembling structure came down all around them. His helmet had come off…again and a large ceiling support beam crashed down on his head. He saw stars. Trying to hold onto the injured man on his shoulders and continue down the stairs he lost his footing and the group of four men tumbled down the flight of stairs. He remembered coming to a stop on the landing in a heap with the others. The debris continued to rain down on the fallen men. Darkness fell on him. He didn't remember how they had gotten them out or if the guard he had been carrying was injured worse or not. He only remembered fighting unsuccessfully to stay awake. Looking for his best friend amongst the rubble, but not being able to see him through his blurred vision and the pain, the excruciating pain he felt in his head and then blackness.
The distraught fever ravaged man tossed and turned in the bed moaning. His arms reached out for something, but what was he reaching for. "Unnn. Ohhh." His breaths were rapid and shallow. "Hurry, Go." He yelled into the emptiness of his room. "Watch out Roy it's coming down!"
Dixie and Cammie heard the yelling coming from Johnny's room as they came off the elevator. They hurried into his room to find him thrashing about in the bed. Dixie reached for the call button and requested Dr. Brackett be paged. Cammie went to the bathroom to get a cool damp cloth and began wiping Johnny's face and whispered soothingly to him. He stopped yelling and his breathing slowed a little, but he was still breathlessly moaning when Dr. Brackett came in. Dixie had been getting new vitals and pulled the thermometer from his armpit where she had been getting an auxiliary temperature reading. "BP 110 over 89, pulse 124, respirations 35 and labored, temperature 103.2," she stated as she wrote the information in the chart.
"Well Johnny you insist on making this hard," Dr. Brackett handed the chart to Dixie with the new notes he had made describing the change in medications to try to get Johnny's temperature down and his labored breathing under control. He was also watching the way that Cammie administered care to the very sick man.
She continued to bathe his face and arms with the damp cloth and talked soothingly to the man. Dr. Brackett noticed that Johnny had opened his eyes and seemed to be searching the room for something or someone. "Dixie, I thing we need to give Roy a call. He is the next of kin, and we may be headed for the vent before the day is done."
"Okay Kel, I'll call him now."
Johnny knew that someone was talking to him, but all he could really hear was the constant buzzing noise in his ears. For some reason he didn't understand he was drawn to the voice. A short time later Roy joined Cammie beside Johnny's bed. "He finally relaxed enough to rest easy. I don't know what he was dreaming about, but it upset him a lot." Cammie looked into Roy's eyes with worried eyes of her own. Roy saw the caring in her eyes. He knew this woman was getting serious about his best friend and that pleased him greatly. "Do you have any idea what has him so upset?"
"I am pretty sure he was remembering the accident. He may not remember that we got the victims out safely. They survived with a fighting chance because Johnny would not give up the search even when we were ordered out. I'll talk to him when he wakes up again. Cammie, if you need to leave I'm here now."
"No Roy I couldn't possibly leave right now. Not until I know what is happening with Johnny."
Roy pulled over the chair from the other side of the room and placed it beside the one Cammie now sat in. She didn't take her eyes off the sleeping man. Roy settled in the chair for the long night. He wouldn't leave his best friend's side until he too knew what was happening with Johnny. Roy and Cammie sat in silence on their self inflicted vigil watching over their friend.
"You know Roy, I think he is an amazing man, and I hope that you don't mind if I try to get to know him better. I know he values your opinion, so if you have no objections then I will be around a lot." She smiled at Roy.
"Johnny is a grown man. He dates who he chooses to date, but in fact Cammie I think it would be nice for you and Johnny to get to know each other better. He is a good man you know."
"I can see that he is, especially if his choice in friends is any indication of who he really is."
Just when the two finished talking Johnny started thrashing in the bed in a fevered fit. Roy took his friend's hand and talked to him. "Johnny the guards are all right. We got them out. You can relax now. I'm here. I'm okay. Take it easy Junior." Johnny relaxed under Roy's instructions and he rested quietly again.
Several hours later Cammie was resting her head on the side of Johnny's bed and Roy was reclining in the chair with his feet propped up on the end of the bed. That is where they were when Johnny's fever broke and he woke up to find them there. When he stirred in the bed both of his friends jerked awake. "Johnny are you okay?" Roy asked.
"Thirsty."
"Here Johnny have some ice water." Cammie lifted the straw to his lips.
"Thanks," he whispered.
Roy pressed the call button and asked for Dr. Brackett to be paged.
A short time later Dr. Brackett and Dixie McCall came into the room.
"How is he Roy?" Brackett asked as he approached the bed. He could see that Johnny looked better. "Well welcome back Mr. Gage. Let me check your lungs. Dixie can you get his vitals?"
"Sure Kel."
"Well Johnny I think the antibiotics are doing their job. Looks like you may have avoided the vent this time."
"Good."
"You may still get out of here in a couple of days as we originally thought, but we will take it one day at a time okay?"
"Yeah Doc Thanks," he whispered as he looked over at Roy and then Cammie. His eyes rested on the beautiful blue eyes looking back at him and he fell into a restful sleep.
Roy and Cammie both agreed to go home since Johnny was better, but they both knew they would be back again after a few hours of their own rest. Cammie had another flight the next afternoon and wanted to see Johnny before she left.
The next morning was cloudy and the weather forecast predicted a bad thunderstorm. Arriving at the hospital in her stewardess uniform, Cammie stopped by to see Dixie before going up to visit with Johnny. "Good morning Dixie."
"Well good morning to you too. My you look nice in your uniform."
"Thank you, but I hope to be trading it in for a white one soon."
"I hope that wish comes true for you Cammie. If things don't work out here then you should try some of the other hospitals in the area. You will make a wonderful ER nurse."
"Well I was on my way up to visit Fireman Gage."
"Cammie why do you call him 'Fireman Gage'?"
"Oh I think it's cute. That is how he first introduced himself to me. I guess you might say I am kind of teasing him, but I don't know if he knows it yet." She smiled at the nurse. "I had better get up there before I have to report to the airport."
When Cammie reached for the handle of the door to Johnny's room she could hear that he was talking to someone.
"Cap I don't know I just….she's well….kinda special…I think. I really want to…ya know get to know her better."
"Well John that's good. I like her. She seems like a really nice woman."
"Thanks Cap."
Cammie didn't know what to think. Could he be talking to his Captain about her, or did he have another woman that he was interested in. She was afraid to find out the answer to that question. Deciding that it must be some other woman Cammie turned and headed towards the stair well instead of going into his room. She had tears in her eyes. Dixie had seen the woman rush away from Johnny's room and wondered what had happened. She could also hear Johnny and Hank Stanley talking through the door to the room. They were obviously discussing something important to Johnny and it sounded like it involved a certain woman. Dixie wondered if Cammie thought they were talking about someone besides her. Thinking to herself that she needed to get in touch with her new friend and make sure she understood that John Gage might also be falling for her Dixie headed for the telephone at the nurse's desk to call the medical flight service and try to find out how to get in touch with Cammie before she boarded the flight she was assigned to. Unfortunately the flight had taken off before Dixie could get through on the number the service had given her.
By the time Cammie's flight took off the storm was raging. The Air Traffic Control Tower had almost grounded all flights, but hers had gotten permission to take off before that happened. After a short time in the air the storm worsened. The plane jolted from the winds and lightning struck the nose of the aircraft. The pilots and stewardesses did everything they could to calm the passengers. They were barely outside of Los Angeles when the aircraft went down.
Johnny was watching the news in his hospital room when the initial report came across. He recognized the name of the airline immediately. He knew that Cammie had a flight that day, because when he had asked Dixie if she knew where she was he had been informed that she was working. He could not believe his ears when the names of the crew were announced. She was on the downed plane. They had gone down in a wooded area and a rescue operation was underway. Finally he had met someone that he thought he might could really fall in love with, and he may very well have lost her forever in the blink of an eye.
