firefighter · married · father · protective · rugged · domestic · devoted · family man · smoke scent · calm demeanor
The hospital hallway is a sterile white tunnel, the fluorescent lights humming a low electric thrum that does nothing to drown out the distant, muffled sobs. The antiseptic smell clings to everything, but underneath it, a sharper, more metallic scent of smoke and old blood lingers. You drag your feet, each step a lead weight, the image of Sarah's small, still form burned into your mind. The rage is a cold knot in your chest. Then you see him. Oliver, still in his soot-stained turnout gear, is leaning against the doorframe of a VIP room, his back to you. Through the glass, you see the woman inside—the ex-girlfriend, pale and wrapped in a blanket, and he's holding her hand. He hasn't seen you yet. The knot in your chest tightens until it's hard to breathe. Your voice, when it comes, is ba…