grand rapids

STATION 51 VISITS GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN
By Mary Ann

"Good, everybody's here." Hank said smiling broadly, as he walked into the kitchen, with an envelope in his hand. "I have something I want to show you." Hank sat down at the table, and his men gathered around him. "Apparently, regardless of our performance in the championship game, our shift's basketball team was invited to participate in the National Fireman's Olympics. I just got the notification from headquarters."

"Where are they holding them this year?" Mike asked, reading the letter over Hank's shoulder.

"It's Michigan's turn to host the event. They're being held just outside Grand Rapids, at Grand Valley State College." Hank answered. "It's a week long event."

"Week long? I don't know Cap. I think I can manage the airfare, but hotel lodging for a week? Even if we double up rooms, it's gonna be pretty expensive." Roy frowned; he didn't want to let his stationmates down, but he knew how taxed his household budget was at the moment.

"I hate to say it, but Roy's got a good point." Marco agreed. "I don't know if I'd be able to afford it myself."

Johnny remained quiet up to this point. "Guys, would you seriously consider going, if I could make arrangements for free lodging for the week?"

"Free? How free is free?" Chet asked, suspicious of any deals Johnny would be involved in.

"I mean, if I could get us a place to sleep for free, although, I think it'd only be right if we pitch in for food, don't you?" He looked at the rest of the crew.

"How are you going to arrange that?" Roy asked his partner.

"I've got a cousin that lives there. I haven't seen her since I visited the family ranch in Montana last summer, but we stayed in touch ever since we moved away from each other. We're still pretty close and I think she might be willing to let us stay with her. I could call her and find out if she is willing to put us up for the week of the Olympics." He explained.

"That actually sounds like a logical idea." Hank looked at Roy.

Roy nodded to Hank and replied. "I say what's the harm in asking. If she says no, then we're back to square one, that's all."

"What about the rest of you. If Johnny can get us free lodging, are you willing to go compete in the Olympics?" Hank asked.

"I'll go." Mike answered immediately.

"I'm in too." Marco added.

"Yeah, okay, sounds like it'd be a lot of fun." Chet agreed.

"I think I better discuss it with Joanne first, since I'd be leaving her alone with the kids for the week. But if she doesn't mind, then I'm in too." Roy smiled at his friends.

"I guess I don't need to ask you if you're interested Johnny, since you suggested staying with your cousin. Okay then, make the call and let's see if we're going to the Olympics or not." Hank handed the letter with the details of the events, to Johnny so he could discuss them with his cousin.

                                                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was on the Friday before the scheduled Monday start of the fireman Olympics, that the six tired travelers left their plane at Kent County International Airport. Johnny immediately began scanning the people in the terminal looking for his cousin. He heard her, before he saw her, as she exclaimed in a loud voice. "Chipmunk!" He barely had time to turn and drop his carry on bag, before he was almost bowled over by the petite brunette, as she leaped into his arms. Tammy Gage, shared Johnny's dark looks. The family resemblance was evident to the rest of the men that worked with Johnny.

"Hey there Squirrel Face." Johnny greeted her just as enthusiastically. When he finally set her down, he realized the rest of the group were softly chuckling and grinning at him.

The temptation was too much for Chet, who had to immediately rub it in. "Chipmunk?" He questioned looking at Johnny with a huge grin on his face.

"Yeah, got a problem with it?" Tammy turned on Chet. The humor was gone from her voice, instantly defending her cousin.

Roy laughed harder. "Guess hot-headedness runs in your family, Johnny."

"Among other things." Johnny admitted, before turning to Tammy. "You might as well tell them, or else they'll keep bugging me to explain it to them."

"Okay. The reason I called him Chipmunk, is because that's the nickname I gave him when we were eight and Johnny got the mumps." Tammy explained. "Come on, I'll show you where baggage claim is."

The men followed her through the terminal, while Johnny explained a little more of his background with Tammy to the rest of his friends. "Tammy and I were born three months apart. Her dad and mine are brothers and they both run the family ranch in Montana. So Tammy and I lived just across the driveway from each other. Growing up we were really close, until I moved to LA, and Tammy moved to Grand Rapids."

"I'm so glad you're going to be here for a whole week. I've got lots of places I want to show you." Tammy gushed, her arm still around Johnny's waist. "Your bags should be somewhere around here." She gestured to the luggage carousel.

Each man found his bag quickly and Tammy led them outside to the van. "Man, I'm so glad that Erica and I traded vehicles this week. I could have never fit you all in my car." She explained climbing into the driver's seat.

Marco looked around as they left the airport parking area. "Not much to see around here is there?" He asked no one in particular, as he took in the fields of growing grain, and some cows at pasture.

Tammy laughed and answered his question anyway. "Guess they just didn't want to live right on top of their airport. Don't worry, Grand Rapids is a big enough town, you'll see." She maneuvered the van onto I-96 heading for downtown. As they got closer, she talked about her new hometown. "The Grand River runs right through the middle of town. It's mostly residential once we get to the west bank. The downtown area's on the east bank. Maybe we'll head downtown one of the days you're here. You'll see it can be pretty confusing to drive through. Half the city's one-way streets, while the other half is regular city blocks. We're coming over the river now. If you guys look to the right, by the dam, you might see some fishermen out there in waders. Seems like there's always one or two of them out there. Did you guys know President Ford's from here?" She pulled off on an exit ramp and headed into the residential neighborhood. Finally pulling the van up into a driveway in front of bungalow style house. "Well, guys, this is your home away from home for the next week."

She let them into her house, while they carried in their luggage. "Sorry to tell you, but there's only one bathroom."

"We'll just have to take turns that's all." Hank said diplomatically. "Tammy, we can't thank you enough for putting us up for the week."

"Ah, for a chance to see Chipmunk again? It's definitely worth it." She smiled at Johnny again. "I'm not sure how you want to make sleeping arrangements. My bedroom's mine, of course. I've got two other bedrooms, and I borrowed some cots from another friend of mine. Unfortunately, one of the bedrooms is too small to fit more than two cots in, so somebody's gonna have to take the couch in the living room."

"I'll take the couch." Mike volunteered immediately.

"You sure?" Hank asked.

"Yeah, anything to get away from Chet's snoring." He teased, smiling.

"I heard that Stoker, and just remember, the phantom has a very good memory." Chet warned in a joking voice.

"Chet, I trust that the phantom will not be with us on our vacation. Just remember, this is Tammy's home." Hank lectured sternly.

"Of course Cap, but once we're back in LA, the phantom will be free to visit a very special victim," he answered, eyeing Mike.

The rest of the evening passed quickly as the guys settled into their rooms, as at work, Johnny and Roy decided to take the two bed room, while Hank, Marco and Chet took the other room. They ate a late dinner and helped Tammy clean up the kitchen afterward. "You don't have to do that." She protested.

"It's okay Tammy, we're used to cleaning up after ourselves. Right guys?" Hank told her in a voice that brooked no argument.

A chorus of 'right Cap' was all that was said as the men finished up the dishes, even drying them and putting them away. "You guys sure you don't want to stay around here longer than a week?" She teased, looking over her immaculate kitchen. She finally looked down at her watch. "Well guys, I hate to call it a day already, but I have to be up by 5:30am to go to work tomorrow."

"On a Saturday?" Johnny asked her.

"Yeah, I volunteered for overtime, since I'll be on vacation all next week. Feel free to make yourselves at home. I'll be back by 4 o'clock tomorrow."

"What exactly do you do for a living anyway?" Chet asked her, hoping to get himself back in her good graces after angering her at the airport.

"Something you never believe by looking at her." Johnny said nudging his cousin.

"What, just because I'm not tall and lanky like you, you don't think I have it in me to do a tough job?"

"So like I asked before, just what do you do?" Chet repeated.

"I work on the assembly line at the Fisher Body Plant." She answered, grinning she raised her arm and showed off her arm muscles to Johnny. "Think I can beat you arm wrestling now, Johnny."

Johnny pretended to feel her muscle. "I don't know Tammy. I sure hate to be embarrassed in front of the guys I have to work with all the time."

"Wimp." She teased. "Good night guys."

"Nite Tammy." They called after her as she headed for her bedroom.

                                                         ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tammy hit the alarm clock, when its incessant ringing woke her up. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, and almost stumbled out of her bedroom on the way to the bathroom in just the oversized T-shirt she wore to bed. "Houseguests." She reminded herself, staggering over to the closet instead to retrieve her bathrobe. Deciding to start coffee before jumping in the shower, she detoured towards the kitchen. She smiled at Mike, sleeping on the couch, his blanket in a heap on the floor. Mike curled his long frame into a tight ball to try to keep warm instead. She picked up the blanket and covered him again with it. Getting the coffee started as quietly as she could, she went into the bathroom and took a quick shower. Feeling more alive, she dressed in her uniform, and returned through the living room, on her way to the kitchen. She noticed the couch was now empty and entered the kitchen to find Mike sitting at the table, a cup of coffee in front of him. "Morning," she said pulling out another coffee cup and filling it.

"Morning." Mike returned shyly.

"Hope I didn't wake you up. I was trying to be as quiet as possible." She pulled the chair next to him out and sat down.

"No, you didn't, the smell of coffee did. It always wakes me up."

"Sorry about that." She apologized reaching for the small radio on the table. She flipped it on, turning the volume of the morning traffic reports down.

"It's okay, don't worry about it." He reassured her flashing her a brief smile.

"So you work with Johnny?" She asked, trying to start up a conversation with the quiet man.

"Yeah, we've worked the same shift for about 7 years now."

"You're on the engine crew, right?"

"Yeah, I'm the station's engineer."

Tammy was beginning to feel like she was pulling teeth trying to get Mike to say more than one sentence at a time, but she continued anyway. "And just what does a station engineer do?"

Mike smiled at her again glad she found a topic he was comfortable talking about. "I drive the engine, and then take care of the pumps, making sure the firemen working a fire have enough water to put out the blaze."

"Sounds like you enjoy your work."

"I do and I couldn't imagine doing anything else. My dad and grandfather were both firemen. When I turned 18, I automatically knew that this was exactly what I wanted to do. What about you, you enjoy your work?"

"Me? I enjoy spending the paycheck. It's not exactly what I planned on doing, and Grand Rapids isn't exactly where I planned on living my life either." She answered.

"You don't like it here?"

"Oh, I guess it's alright. I just came here for all the wrong reasons, that's all. I moved here with a boyfriend. We were supposed to get married, but he flew the coop. Said he wasn't ready to settle down. And after I moved half way across the country just to be with him, the louse. Before he left, I made a lot of really great friends here, and so when he did leave, I decided to stay anyway."

"So, what kind of job would you really like to be doing?" Mike asked grinning at her previous answer.

"It doesn't matter now." Tammy sighed and looked away.

"It matters to me." Mike said softly, embarrassed at his own boldness.

Tammy looked at him. "You don't even know me."

"Well, I thought we were getting to know each other."

She thought about it for a moment, as she sipped her coffee. "Alright, I'll tell you, but you can't breathe a word of it to anyone."

"I won't." Mike promised.

"I've always wanted to be a singer," she admitted, glancing over at him to see if he was laughing.

"Really?"

"Yeah, really."

"So why don't you?" He asked looking at her seriously.

"You're kidding right?"

"No, I'm serious, if it's your dream, why don't you go for it?"

"I don't think I could get up the nerve to sing in front of a bunch of people. What if I'm no good?"

"If you don't try, how are you going to know?" He answered her question with one of his own.

Tammy sighed again and looked at the clock. "I've gotta go, or I'll be late. I'll see you later Mike." She got up from the table, and retrieved her packed lunch from the fridge, grabbing her car keys from the counter, she left quickly, not wanting Mike to see her nervousness at having confided in him the one thing she kept hidden from everyone, including Johnny.

Mike watched her leave. "Oh, that's just great Mike, you finally open your mouth to talk to a girl, and you end up scaring her off." He sighed, and settled back in the chair to wait for the rest of his friends to finally wake up.

                                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tammy arrived home from work, to find the guys sitting around the TV watching a baseball game. "Didn't know you all were Tiger fans." She teased, wearily sitting down on the couch next to Johnny to pull her work boots off.

"Rough day?" Johnny asked sympathetically, looking up from the ball game and watching her roll her shoulders in an attempt to loosen up the knotted muscles there.

"You might say that," she answered, flashing him a copy of his own lopsided grin.

"Come here," he pulled her around on the couch until her back was facing him, and started massaging her shoulders.

"Oh, man, Chipmunk, you haven't lost your touch." She sighed, feeling her shoulders relaxing.

"What can I say, it's all in the hands," he joked, chuckling.

Chet looked over at the two of them, and couldn't help but tease them. "Man, you two sound like an old married couple."

The rest of the guys burst out laughing as both Johnny and Tammy looked over at him, and simultaneously said. "Shut up, Chet."

"I can see Johnny's told you about me." Chet grinned back kindly at Tammy.

"More than you want me to know about you, Chester B," she grinned back at him.

"Aw, Chet, looks like it's gonna be a long week for you." Marco teased.

"Yeah, looks like Tammy can handle you better than Johnny can." Roy added laughing.

"Shh, it's the bottom of the ninth, ya twits." Hank said impatiently turning up the volume a little.

Tammy watched the guys interact, and couldn't help but notice that while Mike laughed along with the rest, he hadn't joined in the conversation. She stood up off the couch. "Well, since Chet seems to think we're an old married couple anyway, how about we make it official. Give me 20 minutes to get cleaned up and you and I can go to the grocery store." She patted Johnny on the head.

"Yeah, okay Squirrel face, I'll go with you." He agreed, sitting back to finish watching the game.

                                                               ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Johnny pushed the cart along the grocery store aisles, as Tammy threw various groceries in the cart. "So, you want to tell me why you really wanted me to go shopping with you?" He asked grinning at her.

"I don't know what you mean." She said looking over the selection of cereals, a little to closely.

"Come on, I know you hate grocery shopping; you always have. I was expecting you to beg me to go do it for you."

"Couldn't do that, you might get lost. You are in a strange town, remember." She answered, trying to avoid the question.

"I can read a map you know. I make my living finding my way around town. Tammy, come on, it's me, Chipmunk, I know when you've got an ulterior motive for something."

She sighed knowing she already lost the battle. "Okay, there is something I wanted to talk to you about, without the other guys around."

"I knew it." He grinned at her. "Spill it."

"How well do you know the guys you work with?"

"Which one of them?" He asked already knowing what she was referring to. "I'm assuming you don't mean Cap or Roy, because they're both married, and that leaves Marco, Chet or Mike, and if you say Chet, I'm disowning you right here and now."

She laughed at the thought, and finally confessed. "Mike, how much do you know about him?"

"Ah-hah, go for the quiet types huh?" He teased, seeing her begin to blush, he knew she was starting to like him. "Well, Mike's a kind of private guy. He's got a good sense of humor. I know that because he'll join in the station pranks any time he gets the chance. And for the big question that I know you're about to ask, I don't think he's seeing anyone. He doesn't get many calls at the station, and I rarely see him come to any of the off duty things we do with a date. Does that satisfy your curiosity?"

She looked at him. "Yeah, I guess so. So you're saying that he's available."

"Yeah, I think it's safe to say that he's available." He agreed, looking down at the full shopping cart. "Are we done yet?"

"And you say I'm the one that hates grocery shopping. Yeah, Chipmunk, we're done."

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tammy handed her empty plate to Marco, as he cleared the table. "Thanks Marco."

"You're welcome." He smiled at her, balancing the stacked dishes in his hands. "No, it's alright, Roy and I got it." He told her when she stood up to head for the sink to wash dishes.

"You sure?"

"It's the least we can do for you Tammy, after all you're letting us stay here for a week." Roy answered her, already filling the sink with hot soapy water.

"I could get used to this." She sat back down grinning, and turned to the other guys still seated around the table. "So you guys want to go do something tomorrow?"

"What do ya have in mind?" Johnny asked her.

"Something we could all enjoy, how about a day at the beach?"

"Beach, they have those in Michigan?" Chet asked, immediately interested at the thought of doing some girl watching while they were on vacation.

"Yeah, ever hear of a thing called Lake Michigan?" She teased him.

The rest of the table snickered at Chet. "Just because they're not near the ocean doesn't mean they don't have beaches." Johnny joined in. He was enjoying the way his cousin always seemed to have a comeback ready for Chet, as opposed to his own sputtering when Chet caught him unprepared.

Tammy winked at Johnny and continued. "I was thinking we drive over to Grand Haven. It's about a half-hour from here. We can spend the day at the beach and then hit a restaurant for dinner. It's kind of a tradition after dinner to walk the boardwalk out to the lighthouse and then watch the Musical Fountain."

"What's a musical fountain?" Mike finally spoke up.

"It's kind of hard to explain until you see it, but people come from all over to see it. You sit in grandstands on one side of the channel where the Grand River that flows through the city, empties out into Lake Michigan. On the opposite bank, are loudspeakers that are set up, and after dark, they run a show. They play music while different colored lights are flashed onto the fountains, making it seem like the fountains of water are dancing to the music." She explained looking straight at him smiling. "So what do you say, you guys want to go?"

"Yeah, sure that sounds like a lot of fun." Johnny agreed immediately, thinking of girls in skimpy bikinis.

"I'm in." Chet agreed.

"Yeah, okay, sounds like a relaxing way to spend the day before the Olympics start." Hank added.

"Roy, Marco, Mike, what about you?" Johnny asked.

"I'm in too." Roy agreed from the sink.

"Me too." Marco also added.

"Sounds like fun." Mike said smiling back at Tammy.

                                                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After dinner, the group stood in front of the grandstands, discussing their after dinner plans. "Well, how about it, you guys up for walking out to the lighthouse over there?" Tammy asked pointing to it off in the distance.

"Actually, Marco, Chet, and I got some plans already. We were going to meet a few of the girls we talked to this afternoon here in about 20 minutes." Johnny answered looking at his watch.

"Tammy, hope you don't mind, but Roy and I were talking about doing a little souvenir shopping for the family back home." Hank explained.

"No, that's fine, go right ahead. The street right here has a lot of souvenir shops. I'm sure you'll find something you like." Tammy pointed to the street. "Guess that leaves you Mike, how about it?"

"Okay. After that dinner, I think I need to walk some of it off." He immediately agreed, glad for the chance to apologize to Tammy for their conversation of the morning before.

"Alright. I was hoping at least one of you would want to go." Tammy smiled at him. "We'll meet you guys back here by 9:45. The show normally starts around 10 o'clock."

"Have fun." Johnny waved at his cousin winking at her.

Tammy had the strange feeling that Johnny engineered her private walk with Mike, but didn't let on. "Okay, see you later."

They walked along in silence, until they were out of hearing range of the other guys. Finally, Mike got up the nerve to say what had been on his mind since yesterday morning. "Tammy, I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Tammy looked at him blankly, not remembering a time when Mike had said anything out of line.

"For yesterday. I'm sorry I said that about giving singing a try."

"I'm not sorry you said it. You only said what my own heart's been telling me for a while now."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Don't worry about it." She smiled at him. "So tell me the truth, half of what Johnny tells me what goes on around the station can't be true, can it?"

"Depends on what he told you." Mike answered, chuckling as he recalled some of the pranks they pulled on each other.

"Okay, did he really put the CPR dummy in Chet's trunk?"

Mike laughed out loud this time. "Yeah, and Chet fell for it three times."

"You're kidding?"

"No, Johnny just laughed when he fell for it again and said he must be a slow learner."

"Sounds like Johnny." She agreed.

They continued the lighthearted conversation, walking along the boardwalk until they came to the pier that led out to the lighthouse. Walking all the way to the end in front of the lighthouse, they watched the waves crash into the front of the pier. "It's pretty out here." Mike commented, looking out at the setting sun over the water.

"Yeah, we're lucky it's a calm day. When the winds whip up, you can't get out to the lighthouse, let alone stand up front here and watch the sunset." She glanced over at him, to find him watching the sunset intently.

Mike's mind was a whirl of thoughts. "Come on Mike, here's your one chance, go ahead. Kiss her." He debated with himself for a long time, watching the sun dip deeper into the water. It was almost dark, when Tammy turned quickly to him, put her arm around his neck, and pulled him in to a tender kiss. When his mind stopped spinning long enough for him to form a thought, he finally asked her. "What'd you do that for?"

Her gaze locked with his as she answered. "Because I knew you wouldn't."

He smiled at her, and pulled her into a hug. "Thank you," he whispered in her ear.

"You're welcome." She answered, as he took the initiative, and kissed her again. When they parted, she glanced at her watch. "We better head back. It's almost 9:30 already."

"Yeah, okay, come on." He held out his hand for her, and she slipped her hand in his, as they began their walk back to the grandstands.

When they rounded the bend in the boardwalk that brought them into view of the grandstands, Tammy slipped her hand out of Mike's. "No offense Mike, but I want it to be our little secret for now."

"I understand." He agreed.

"I thought you would." She smiled at him. They met up with the rest of their group and as the show started, Tammy found herself sandwiched between Johnny and Mike. As the lights dimmed, she scooted over closer to Mike and slipped her hand under his arm, holding hands with him through the show, while they stole glances at each other.

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monday morning, was a chaotic affair as seven people tried to use one bathroom to get ready to leave for the Olympics. Tammy sat at the table with Johnny, Mike, Roy and Hank, while Chet and Marco finished shaving in the bathroom. "Oh, by the way Johnny, while you're out at Grand Valley State College, better keep a close eye out for Big Sid." She told him mysteriously.

"Big Sid? Who's that, a fireman from another team?" He asked her, puzzled.

"No." She laughed, and explained. "We had a circus stop into the town of Standale, which is nearby to the college. When they packed up to leave, they left one of their performers behind."

"Big Sid?" Roy asked.

"Uh-huh." Tammy nodded her head.

"And just what act was Big Sid in?" Hank inquired.

"The sideshow." She answered trying to extend the conversation, knowing that Johnny's curiosity would soon get the better of him.

"The sideshow?" Mike asked.

"Yup."

"Dammit Tammy! Just tell me already, why do I have to watch out for Big Sid?" Johnny demanded to know, finally reaching the breaking point.

"Okay, I'll tell you Chipmunk. Jeez, and I used to think you were impatient. Big city life has really shortened your patience level." She grinned at the exasperated look on his face, and continued. "Big Sid is the 20 foot python that's been loose in Standale for the last month."

Johnny squirmed as the other firefighters struggled to suppress their laughter, knowing Johnny's distaste for snakes since his own experience of being bitten by a rattlesnake a few years ago. "Thanks for the warning."

"Bathroom's all yours Johnny." Marco joined them at the table.

"Thanks." He replied jumping up from the table and rushing to the bathroom. The rest of the people left at the table, with the exception of Marco, burst out laughing.

"What'd I miss? What's so funny?" Marco asked, looking at his friends.

"Nothing, just be sure to watch out for Big Sid." Tammy answered him, sending the rest of the table into another fit of laughter.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hank checked the schedule as soon as they arrived at the Firemen's Olympics. "Guys we have a 2pm start time for our first game. Maybe we should have a strategy meeting here about 1 o'clock." He suggested.

"We're all playing the same positions from before right?" Roy asked.

"I guess that was the plan, since it seemed to work for us before." Hank nodded his head agreeing with Roy.

"Well, I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Johnny added his opinion.

"Hey, that's not fair, then that means I'm riding the bench again!" Chet protested.

"Exactly." Marco teased his friend, grinning at him.

"So why'd you guys even bring me along." Chet grumbled to no one in particular.

Hank smiled at his stocky fireman, answering him anyway. "Well, for starters, what if one of us fouls out?"

"Or gets hurt?" Roy added.

"Come on Chet, you're just as much a part of this team as any of us." Johnny told him.

"That's right. Besides, I promise you Chet, you'll see some game time. I'll be sure to put you in each game for a little bit." Hank offered.

"Thanks, I'm sure I'll get my magic touch back. I got a feeling guys." Chet smiled at the rest of his friends.

The game was intense.   The score seesawed back in forth between the two teams At half time the score was tied 22-22. In the locker room, Hank mapped out his strategy for the next half of the game with Chet buzzing in his ear the whole time about his promise to put him in the game. In the fourth quarter, with Station 51's team behind 38-43, Hank finally begrudgingly substituted Chet for Marco, giving him the promised game time. Chet surprised his teammates by again making his impossible long distance shots. Station 51 won the game by a score of 52-47. Tammy rushed out of the stands when the buzzer sounded, meeting the guys still on the floor.

"Congratulations." She smiled at them, hugging Johnny.

"Thanks Tammy." He smiled back at her.

"Quite an exciting game. Chet you never told me, you were such a good shot." Tammy complimented him.

"Aw, it's nothing." Chet mumbled embarrassed at the praise.

"I'll be back. I need to find out when our next game is." Hank excused himself to go talk to the officials.

Tammy caught Mike's eye. "Good game." She told him warmly.

"Thanks." He smiled back at her, his eyes sparkling.

Hank returned and began picking up their gear. "Our next game's tomorrow morning at 10am."

"Did you guys want to stick around for a while, or head home?" Tammy asked.

"Well, if you don't mind, I was kind of hoping we could stick around for a while. At 4:30pm the two teams that are playing to advance and play us tomorrow have their game. I'd like to see how good they are." Hank answered her.

"Sure, no problem, we can stick around. Why don't you guys change and we can pack your stuff back in the van for now, so you won't have to lug it around with you." She offered.

"Good idea." Hank agreed. "We'll be back in a few minutes."

The team headed for the locker room and returned a few minutes later. "Johnny, why don't you and I take everything back to the van?" Tammy suggested.

"Sure." He agreed getting the feeling she wanted to talk to him about something. They returned to the van and put the team's gear in the back. Johnny shut the door to the van, and leaned back against it. "Something on your mind?"

"Guess you still know me well." Tammy smiled at him.

"Come on, you're practically my sister, we grew up together, I know you like the back of my hand." He replied, looking out over the field behind the parking lot, nervously.

"Okay. I'll just come right out and say it. Did you arrange for Mike and I to walk the boardwalk together alone last night?"

Johnny flashed her a lopsided grin. "And if I did?"

"I just wanted to know if the other guys know?"

"I might have mentioned that I thought you two would like some time alone to talk."

Tammy jabbed an accusing finger in his chest. "I thought you had something to do with it."

He swatted her finger aside. "Don't you act mad about it now. I caught you two holding hands last night." He laughed at her.

"Do the other guys suspect that we hit it off last night?" She asked laughing along with him.

"I think they have their suspicions, why?"

"Well, we were going to try to be discreet, but since it seems somebody let the cat out of the bag already. I guess it doesn't matter now." She grinned at him, watching him scan the field again. "By the way, what's that?" She pointed to the field, and walked away.

"What's what?" Johnny asked, checking the field more closely. "Tammy?!" He called after her, still scanning the field. "Did you see Big Sid?"

"Maybe." She called back over her shoulder to him, chuckling.

"Tammy?!" He called again, hurrying to catch up with her.

                                                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday morning at 8:45am, Tammy pulled the van into the parking area near the college. As the guys piled out, Chet glanced over at Johnny and then pointing out to the field, asked in a loud voice. "What's that?" As the rest of the guys turned to look, Tammy looked at Chet, who winked at her and continued. "I thought I saw the grass move."

"Where?" Johnny immediately asked, his voice cracking with excitement.

Tammy winked back at Chet and joined in. "You know that's the same place I thought I saw something yesterday."

"No, kidding." Chet asked, trying to hide the smirk on his face from Johnny. "Are you sure you want to park the van here?"

"Why not, seems like a good parking place to me?" Tammy asked innocently.

"I've heard about snakes sometimes crawling up inside of engine blocks to stay warm."

"You know, I heard that too. You really think a snake that big could lift itself that far off the ground." Tammy asked, cocking her head and looking under the van.

"I don't know, maybe." Chet answered.

"Alright you two, let's not get Johnny too distracted, he's got a game to play." Roy told them, chuckling.

Tammy smiled. "Alright, come on, you guys have a game to win."

"Yeah, come on Johnny, I didn't see anything out there, honest." Chet grinned at him.

"You sure?" Johnny asked, still skeptical.

"I'm sure, come on, I was just pulling your leg."

"Okay, then. Let's go." Johnny turned away from the field, and picked up his duffel bag.

"Hey, Roy, what is that?" Hank asked, pointing off in a different part of the field.

"Not you too." Roy shook his head in disbelief and picked up his duffel bag, turning away from the field.

"Ha-ha, you're not fooling me with that again." Johnny looked at his captain, and slung his duffel bag over his shoulder, not giving a second look to the field. He and the rest of the group with the exception of Hank began walking towards the gym.

"Have it your way, ya bunch of twits, but I did see something!" Hank called after them, then picked up his bag and followed the rest of the group to the gym doors. Meanwhile out in the field, the 20-foot long python slithered back to it's hiding hole deep in the middle of the field.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tammy rushed out of the stands hoarse from all the cheering she had just done. In yet another miracle victory, Hank's decision to put Chet in, again won the game for them. Instead of running up to Johnny, Tammy ran to Mike instead. "Great game." She complimented, and gave the surprised firefighter a quick kiss.

Mike blushed, and looked around. "Um, Tammy, I thought we were gonna keep things quiet?"

"Seems my cousin let the rest of the guys in on it, when he planned for us to walk the boardwalk together the other night." Tammy shot Johnny an accusing look, laughing.

"Well, as long as everybody already knows, then what the heck." He smiled down at her, and pulled her into a close hug, kissing her again.

"Do the rest of us get congratulated like that?" Chet asked teasing.

"Not by me, you don't." Tammy replied playfully.

Hank returned from talking to the officials. "Well our next game is tomorrow afternoon at 1 o'clock. Great job guys, we've made it to the semi-finals."

"Really?" Marco asked.

"Yeah, it's a single elimination tournament. Once you're out, you're out for the rest of the week." He explained.

"Who are we playing tomorrow?" Roy asked.

"Station 56 from Chicago." He answered frowning. "I just overheard some people saying that they're really good, but they play rough."

"We can handle it." Chet bragged.

"I hope so." Hank agreed worriedly.

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tammy tossed and turned that night, not being able to fall asleep. She listened to the quiet of the house and knew she would find no rest tonight. She quietly got up, and dressed in an old sweat suit, and headed out for the garage. It needed a good cleaning for some time, but she was putting it off. "What better way to try to get tired, than cleaning out the garage." She thought to herself as she pulled open the garage door. Flipping on the stereo on the back shelf, she began pulling boxes that needed to be sorted away from the wall, and into the middle of the garage. Sitting down on the floor, she began the tedious job of sorting, singing along to the popular tunes playing on the radio.

She felt her heart beat in her throat when she heard a voice behind her. "You're good."

"Huh?" She asked confused, turning towards the voice.

"I said you're good. I've been standing here listening to you for a few minutes. You have a great singing voice." Mike complimented her, crossing the floor to sit next to her.

"You really think so?" She asked, throwing some more unwanted things into the trashcan.

"Yeah, I wouldn't have said it if I didn't mean it." He watched her sort things for a minute. "What are you doing out here anyway?"

"Couldn't sleep. Thought puttering around out here in the garage might tire me out." Tammy answered smiling at him. "What about you, what are you doing up?"

"Light sleeper. I heard the radio outside and wanted to make sure someone wasn't out here robbing you blind."

"Sorry, I didn't want to wake anybody up. You all need your rest for tomorrow."

"To tell you the truth, I wasn't sleeping much anyway, too much on my mind."

"Like what?" Tammy asked him.

"Honestly?"

"Yeah, honestly." She nodded at him.

"I was trying to figure out you and me, you know what I mean?"

Tammy sighed and pushed the box she was sorting through away. "To tell you the truth, that's the real reason I'm out here too."

"I really think you and I have something special starting." He told her shyly.

"Me too. I was wondering where things will go from here."

"I'm not too sure." Mike admitted.

"I know, if we take things any farther, we could both end up getting hurt."

"That's true, but there's one thing that I've learned as a firefighter."

"What's that got to do with what's happening between us?" Tammy asked confused.

"Everything. What I've learned is don't put anything off until tomorrow, because there might not be a tomorrow." He told her seriously, moving in closer. He put his arms around her, and took a deep breath, and finally whispered in her ear. "I want to be with you tonight."

He felt himself blushing as he waited for her answer. Tammy thought over what he just told her, deciding he was right. She smiled at him, and stood up holding her hand out for him. "Come on." She replied, watching the relief wash over his face.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wednesday morning, was a more relaxed morning, since the game didn't start until 1pm, there was no fighting over the bathroom to get ready to go. Tammy and Mike sat on the couch, watching a game show, while they waited for the rest of the group to get ready. Mike had his arm around her, and the two whispered back and forth, oblivious to anyone else in the room. Johnny grinned at seeing the two of them together when he finished in the shower, and sat down in the chair across the room from them, barefoot, his hair unkempt, and still dripping wet from his shower. He knew this was too good of an opportunity to let slide, and had to tease his cousin about it. "Tammy, you'd better do something about your house settling."

"Excuse me?" She asked confused.

"Last night, boy, was there a lot of noise coming from your room. It sounded like your bed was really shaking from all the settling the house was doing."

She grinned back at him. "Seems to me, you settled the barn a few times that I can remember."

"I don't know what you're talking about." He replied innocently.

"Oh, you don't, do you?" She sat forward, and listed off on her fingers. "Let's see, there was Karen, Melanie, Carrie. . . Should I go on?"

"I think he gets the point." Mike chuckled, grinning at the two of them.

"Yeah, I'm just giving you a hard time. I'm just glad if you had to hook up with one of the guys I work with, it wasn't Chet."

"I think I have better taste than that." Tammy laughed, turning back to Mike. "Guess we'll just have to be quieter next time."

"Guess so." Mike agreed laughing.

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The rumors Hank heard about Station 56 proved to be true, as the men of Station 51 found themselves on the receiving end of several, supposedly accidental elbows to the head, and other body parts. In the fourth quarter, the game was still a close one, despite the roughness coming from the other team. The score swayed back and forth with each team taking the lead for a short while, but unable to rack up enough points to make it impossible for the other to catch up. In yet another play that ended with a tangle of bodies on the floor, one person didn't get up. Roy and Johnny's paramedic instincts immediately kicked in and they rushed to the injured man.

"Mike, you alright? What happened?" Roy asked, being the first to reach the downed man.

"My ankle. I think somebody landed on in, I can't move it." Mike answered, through teeth gritted in pain.

"You can't move it at all?" Johnny asked, already feeling Mike's ankle to assess the damage.

"No, I think. . . " He tried to answer, but hissed in pain, when Johnny touched a sore spot.

Johnny exchanged a look with Roy. "It's broken."

Roy looked around for Tammy, who had just made her way out on the court to them. "Tammy, where's the closest hospital?"

"Butterworth's the closest, but it's still downtown Grand Rapids." She answered. "How bad is it?"

"I'm pretty sure it's broken." Johnny told her, standing up from Mike. "You still have that blanket in the van?"

"Yeah, I was gonna bring it in the house to wash the sand out of it, but I kept forgetting. Want me to get it for you?"

"Yeah, and bring along those beach towels too."

"Okay, I'll be right back." Tammy took off out of the building at a run to the van.

"Hang in there Mike; we're gonna get you splinted up and Tammy'll drive you to the hospital." Roy reassured him, squeezing his shoulder.

"Man, I hate leaving you guys to finish the game without me." Mike shook his head.

"Don't you worry about that now. We'll be okay." Hank told his engineer. "Alright, as long as we're waiting for Tammy to come back, let's have a quick strategy meeting. With Mike out, we're going to have to shift some positions. I'll be center. Johnny, you and Roy are forwards, and Marco and Chet will play guards. That alright with everybody?"

"It's fine Cap. It has to be." Marco spoke for the rest of the team.

Johnny and Roy bandaged a makeshift soft splint around Mike's injured ankle, as Tammy pulled the van up to the gym doors. They helped Mike out to the van. "Tammy, don't worry about us. We'll find a way to get to the hospital after the game. You just stay with Mike." Johnny told her, as he gently set Mike's injured foot down on the floorboard of the van.

"Okay, we'll see you there." Tammy answered him, before driving away.

                                                              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was two hours later, when Hank and the rest of the guys joined Tammy in the waiting room of Butterworth Hospital's emergency department. "How's Mike?" He immediately asked.

"You guys were correct, it's broken alright. They're putting a cast on it right now." Tammy explained, looking over at Johnny and Roy. "How'd the game go."

"Oh, that, we lost." Johnny looked down dejected.

"Now, come on, we played a fair game. We can at least hold our heads up and take a little pride in that." Hank told him.

"Yeah, that other team was brutal. I'm surprised that Mike's the only one that ended up in here." Chet added.

"I was sure if I got elbowed in the mouth one more time, I was gonna lose a few teeth." Marco said sitting down in a chair.

"The guys are right Johnny. If they want to cheat their way to the top, I say let them. It's just too bad that somebody had to get hurt over it." Roy sat down next to Marco to begin their wait for Mike.

"How'd you guys get here anyway?" Tammy asked, reaching up, and pulling Johnny down into the seat next to her.

"There was a group of firemen from Grand Rapids there today, watching the game. They saw Mike get hurt, and one of them overheard us talking after the game about Mike, and how we were going to get ourselves to the hospital, since our ride left with him. He got his buddies together, and they offered us a ride to the hospital. We took them up on their offer, and they shuttled us over here in their cars." Johnny explained.

Mike was wheeled out into the waiting area, a pair of crutches in his hands. "Hey guys. Did we win?"

"No, but that's okay Mike. The only reason they won, is because they cheated." Chet told him.

"And, you lost your magic touch." Marco added, grinning for the first time since they arrived at the hospital.

"I guess it just comes and goes." Chet admitted, grinning back at Marco.

"Look, we did our best and that's all anyone can expect from us." Hank joined in the conversation. "Maybe Tammy can show us more of the sights tomorrow, since we have a free day."

"Yeah sure, I guess we could go to the public museum." Tammy offered.

"Learn some more about Grand Rapids history. Yeah, why not." Roy agreed.

"Sure, as long as there's lots of places to sit down." Mike smiled at her, holding up his crutches a little.

"Don't worry, I was thinking you all might enjoy the show at the planetarium."   Tammy smiled back at him. "You just sit back and watch the stars."

"Sounds about my speed." Mike replied, chuckling a little.

"Okay then, let's get you home, so you can rest up for tomorrow."

                                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So, who's Roger B. Chaffee?" Chet asked standing in front of the planetarium as they waited for the doors to open, and get their seats for the show.

"You never got into the space program?" Tammy asked.

"Not really, other than watching them land on the moon in '69." Chet answered.

"Roger B. Chaffee was an astronaut in the Apollo program. He was one of the three astronauts that died on the launch pad in the fire they had. So the planetarium is named after him."

"I remember hearing something about that fire, but I never knew the names of the guys that were killed in it." Chet looked over the display on the wall of the planetarium thoughtfully.

The doors opened and everyone found their seat. Mike dropped gratefully into one, setting his crutches down on the floor in front of him. "Boy, it feels good to get off of those for a while." He told Tammy.

"After the show, why don't we just sit it out and wait for the rest of the guys to finish going through the museum." Tammy suggested.

"Isn't there more things you want to see?" He asked her.

"No, it's okay. I've seen it before. Besides, we only have two more days before you leave for California and I'd rather spend the time with you instead."

Mike smiled at her. "Yeah, I know what you mean."

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday afternoon, the group attended the awards ceremony and were pleasantly surprised to find out they won a fourth place trophy. Hank accepted the trophy for the men of Station 51, thanking his crew and then Tammy for putting them up for a week. After the ceremony's dinner was finished, they sat around the table discussing what they wanted to do on their last evening in Grand Rapids.

"I don't know about the rest of you, but I'd like to spend some more time meeting some of the local girls here." Johnny suggested.

"I like that idea, Gage." Chet seconded.

"Why not? We have a trophy that needs celebrating." Hank agreed.

"Okay then, I know just the place. It's got a good dance floor, and for those of you not into dancing, there's a pool table and dart boards." Tammy offered.

"Alright then, let's go." Marco said.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once they arrived at the bar, Mike and Tammy chose to sit at the table, keeping an eye on everyone else's drinks. Mike was still in some pain and on pain medication and could not drink. Tammy, as the designated driver would also not drink and chose to spend the last remaining night she had with Mike, deep in intimate conversation, while the other guys could cut loose and enjoy themselves. Roy immediately challenged Hank to a pool game, while Marco chose to join a group of people tossing darts. Johnny and Chet, sat at the table plotting which girls they would try to hit on, while consuming shots, to loosen themselves up. Tammy watched how much her cousin was drinking, but figured since she was driving anyway, he could get as sloshed as he wanted.

After a while, Johnny and Chet were both feeling the effects of the shots and began having a slurred conversation. "Chet, old buddy, can you explate, explain sometine to me?" Johnny asked.

"Whas that?"

"Why am I allas the one you bomb?"

"Huh?" Chet looked over at him, trying to pull his wits together.

"Bomb, why is I alwas the one you water bomb?" Chet found this question amazingly funny, and burst out laughing for a long time. "Whas so funny?"

Chet fought to control his laughter. "You really wanna know?"

"Yeah, dammit, I's do." Johnny insisted nodding his head wildly.

"Okay dokie, I'll tell yous." Chet agreed, cracking a drunken grin again.

"Good, I've wanned to know for a long, long time."

"I alwas bomb yous cuz you alwas reac, react tos it."

"So, yous means if I juss walks away, you'd leaves me lone?" Johnny asked shaking his head, in an attempt to clear the cobwebs out.

"Xactly." Chet nodded drunkenly.

"Oh." Johnny said.

Hank and Roy rejoined the table, catching the tail end of Johnny and Chet's conversation. "Um, I think it's time we get these two home." Hank suggested.

"I think that's a good idea." Roy agreed. "I'll get Marco." He left to find Marco.

"Johnny, Chet, I think it's time we head home." Hank told them sitting down next to them.

"Whaddya mean time to go? I's jus ready to go over dar an meet some girls." Johnny pointed a wavering finger across the room.

"I don't think so." Hank said sternly. "They're going to think that all LA county firefighters are a bunch of twits."

"Aw, Cap, we's not that dunk." Chet whined.

"Look Johnny, I agree with Hank. You really wouldn't be showing off your best side right now." Tammy added, hoping to convince her cousin.

"Besides that, you two are already going to have a miserable morning. You don't want to add feeling humiliated by embarrassing yourselves in front of some beautiful girls to that list do you?" Mike asked.

"Guess not." Johnny admitted.

"Okay then, it's settled, let's go." Hank told them, helping both Johnny and Chet to their feet. Marco and Roy rejoined the group and Roy helped lead a staggering Johnny to the van, while Hank and Marco steadied Chet.

                                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Once the house had quieted down, Mike snuck over to Tammy's bedroom door and knocked softly on it. "Tammy, it's me, Mike."

"Come on in." Tammy whispered back.

Mike opened the door and entered her room. "Were you sleeping?"

"No, I was hoping you'd come in here." She admitted sitting up in bed.

Mike hobbled over to the bed and sat down. "I was just thinking about us."

"Me too." Tammy moved over to the opposite side of the bed. "Why don't you lean back against the headboard and put your foot up, you might be more comfortable."

Mike turned and leaned back, putting his feet up on the bed. "Thanks, that does feel a little better." He opened his arms to her. "Come here."

Tammy snuggled over closer to him, and rested her head on his chest, while he closed his arms around her. She sighed. "I was just thinking about how much I'm going to miss you."

"Yeah, I know, I was thinking the same thing too."

"Why couldn't we have lived closer to each other?"

"I don't know. I just know that you can't always plan out who you fall in love with."

"Fall in love with, are you saying you're in love with me?" Tammy asked, pulling her head off his chest to look in his eyes.

"Yeah, I guess that is what I'm saying." Mike nodded his head, returning her gaze.

"I can't believe this has all happened so fast, but I think I'm in love with you too."

Mike smiled at her response, and gently leaned down to kiss her softly. "I don't know how this is all going to work out. I only know that I don't want to think about it ending."

"Me neither. Guess we're about to find out what having a long distance relationship is all about."

"Guess so." Mike agreed. "I know one thing. I want to spend my last night here with you in my arms."

"There's no place I'd rather be tonight." She answered. He kissed her again, more passionately this time, his arms tightening around her.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tammy woke up early the next morning. Mike's arms were still around her. She turned around slowly in his arms, not wanting to wake him up, and studied his sleeping face. "I really do love him." She thought as silent tears ran down her face.

Mike woke up slowly, feeling the warm body next to him trembling slightly. He opened his eyes to find Tammy crying in his arms. "Tammy what is it?" He asked pulling her closer to him, and kissing her tearstained cheek.

"I just started thinking about the fact that tomorrow when I wake up, you won't be here."

"Maybe we shouldn't have started this." He frowned, sad to know he was the cause of her pain.

"No, I'm glad we started this. I'm just feeling lonesome for you already, and I shouldn't." She wiped the tears off her face with the back of her hand. "I don't want to waste any time we have together feeling this way." She pulled his face to hers and kissed him a long lingering kiss.

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Although they were the first ones to wake up that morning, they were the last one's out of bed, finally joining the other guys at the table for breakfast. Johnny, through the dark sunglasses he wore, and the pounding headache he felt, noticed how Tammy pushed the food around her plate, not really eating. When Mike got up from the table to take a shower, Johnny got up and took Tammy's hand. "Excuse us for a few minutes, would you." He said to the other guys, leading Tammy back into her bedroom, and closing the door. "You okay?"

Tammy started to say "Fine." But she knew her cousin knew her better than anyone. "No, I'm not okay." She told him honestly, feeling tears well up in her eyes again.

Johnny pulled her into a hug, letting her cry on his shoulder. "You fell in love with him, didn't you." He asked softly.

Tammy nodded and continued crying. "I didn't think it was going to hurt this bad, knowing he's leaving today."

"I know. Listen, you ever need to talk about it, I'm always here for you. We may live far apart, but we still have the telephone."

"Thanks Johnny. You'll keep an eye on him and make sure he stays safe, right?"

"Trust me Tammy.   I know he's got the safest job out of all of us, but I'll take care of him for you."

"I guess it's easier knowing the kind of guys he works with already. I'm gonna miss him so much."

"Anytime you want, you always know you can always come and visit and stay with me. My door's always open."

"Yeah, I know." Tammy nodded, wiping tears away with her hand. "Thanks Johnny."

"You're welcome. I think Mike's out of the bathroom by now. Why don't you sneak in there and wash up." He suggested.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I don't want Mike to see me like this."

                                                             ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mike and Tammy sat apart from the rest of the group waiting for their boarding call for the return flight to Los Angeles. "I'll call you as soon as we get back home." Mike told her.

"I'll be waiting." Tammy smiled, hiding her breaking heart from him. He kissed her tenderly and held her close as the announcement they'd both been dreading finally came. "Flight 207 for Los Angeles is now boarding at gate 3."

Mike hugged her tight again, and they both stood up. The rest of the guys came over to them.

"Tammy, I just want to thank you for putting up with us for a week." Hank told her, giving her a warm hug.

"You're welcome. I enjoyed every minute of it." She answered hugging him back.

"You've got to come to LA sometime and see us there." Marco hugged her also.

"I'll have to take you guys up on that offer sometime."

"I hope so. The phantom would love to meet you." Chet grinned at her.

Tammy reached over and hugged him too. "I don't know about that, but I think I'd better keep my eyes open while I'm there. Good bye Chet."

"You'll have to come by and meet my wife and kids while you're there." Roy told her pulling her into a hug.

"I can't wait to meet them. I feel like I know them already by how much you've told me about them."

Johnny pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead. "Good bye Squirrel face. I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too Chipmunk." She smiled at him kissing his cheek. "Take care of yourself, and the other guys too." She whispered in his ear.

"Always do." Johnny smiled back at her. "Mike, we'll meet you on the plane." He and the other guys waved to Tammy one more time before disappearing through the gate, leaving Mike and Tammy alone.

He pulled her into his arms and held her close. "I don't want to leave you, but you know I have to."

"I know. I wish I could jump on the plane and go with you, but I can't do that either." She agreed fighting back tears.

He kissed her again, slowly, memorizing the feel of her in his arms. They held each other close until the final boarding call was announced. "I've got to go."

"I know." She nodded, she kissed him again, and stepped back from him. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too." Mike picked up his carry on bag. He stepped back up to her, pulled her in his arms one more time, kissed her quickly and abruptly turned and walked to the gate, not looking back.

Tammy sat by the window watching as the plane pulled away from the gate. She watched until it sped down the runway and lifted off the ground. Then she let the tears fall freely.

                                                            ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After almost six weeks, Mike's ankle healed and he returned to work. Johnny called Tammy often, and knew that Mike and his cousin, were still keeping close, calling each other often. He sat down at the table with the rest of the guys for lunch. "Guys, I was thinking."

"Oh, this ought to be good." Chet teased.

"I'm serious here Chet."

"Okay then, let's hear it." Hank asked.

"I was thinking about how we could thank Tammy for letting us stay with her for a week. How about we all pitch in and get her an airline ticket to come here to visit? I've already talked with the airlines and it would only cost us about $25 dollars each. She can stay with me and come here and see you all too."

"That's not a half bad idea." Hank agreed.

"$25 dollars, you said?" Roy asked out loud while thinking it over. "That's not too bad. Let me ask Joanne if we could arrange a barbecue or some kind of get together for her while she's here."

"I'd like to see her again. She was a lot of fun." Marco agreed.

"Chet, Mike?" Johnny asked, turning towards them.

"You don't even have to ask." Mike said quietly, getting up from the table and leaving the kitchen.

Chet watched him leave. "I'm in too. They're still close aren't they?"

"Yeah, Chet, they're calling each other every night Mike's off." Johnny told him honestly, hoping he wasn't telling the guys something Tammy and Mike didn't want them to know.

"I figured as much. I've seen the look on Mike's face every time we talk about our trip to Grand Rapids." Roy added.

"Remember how he looked when I developed my pictures from Grand Rapids and brought them in?" Johnny asked no one in particular.

"Yeah, especially the ones with Tammy in them." Chet answered anyway.

"I gave those ones to him." Johnny admitted.

"Well, I say we take up the collection this Friday when we get paid, and Johnny buy the ticket and let's get her out here as soon as she can arrange her schedule." Hank suggested.

The men all nodded in agreement. "Okay, I'll call her as soon as I have the ticket." Johnny told them.

                                                                 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was three weeks later when Mike and Johnny met Tammy's plane at LAX. Johnny watched as Tammy flew straight into Mike's waiting arms and kissed him hungrily. "I can't believe I'm really here." She said as the kiss ended.

"I know, I can't believe it either." Mike answered smiling at her.

"Hey, anyone remember that I'm here." Johnny teased.

"Hi, Chipmunk. I missed you." Tammy smiled at him, pulling away from Mike and hugging her cousin.

"I bet Squirrel face." He laughed kissing her cheek. "Come on, we'd better get going the other guys are waiting."

"Waiting?" Tammy asked.

"Yeah, they're all over at Roy's house. Did I forget to tell you we're having a party over there?" Johnny threw her a lopsided grin.

"Yeah, I think you did forget to mention that, but that's alright, I was looking forward to seeing them all again anyway."

                                                           ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Everyone enjoyed themselves at the party and Tammy had the chance to meet Roy's wife Joanne, and their kids. Hank introduced his wife Marsha and their two teenage daughters to her. Later in the evening, people started filtering home, and finally it was only Johnny, Mike, Tammy, Roy, and Joanne left.

Johnny and Roy shot each other a look and Roy finally said. "Well, looks like the party's over. Wanna help Joanne and I clean up, Junior?"

Johnny glanced over at Mike and Tammy. "Yeah, sure Pally. I'll help you."

Joanne took the hint, from the looks Roy and Johnny were exchanging. "Good idea guys. Why don't you pick up out here, and I'll get the dishes going, just keep bringing them in to me, and we'll get this place cleaned up in no time."

"I'll help you with the dishes." Tammy offered, standing up.

"No, you're the guest of honor, please enjoy yourself. Mike, why don't you keep her company." Joanne stated firmly, pushing Tammy back down in the chair by her shoulders.

"Well, since you put it that way, I guess I'll stay here and talk to Mike." Tammy smiled at her. "Thanks so much for hosting this party, Joanne."

"You're welcome Tammy. Alright guys let's get this place cleaned up." Joanne, Johnny, and Roy all left to clean up the remnants of the party, giving Mike and Tammy some privacy.

Mike pulled Tammy out of her chair, and settled her into his lap. "God, I missed you." He said kissing her neck.

"I missed you too. Mike there's something I need to tell you."

"What is it, you know you can tell me anything."

"I'm not so sure you want to hear this." Tammy frowned.

"Tell me." Mike urged.

"Mike, I'm pregnant."

"You're what?" He asked in disbelief.

"I'm pregnant." She repeated.

"You're sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. I found out right after Johnny sent me the plane ticket. I wanted to wait until I saw you in person before I told you." She admitted.

"So that's why you sounded so funny on the phone lately."

"Yeah, I was afraid it was going to slip out."

"Well there's only one thing to do about it." Mike looked at her smiling.

"What's that?" She asked.

"Get married."

"Get married? How are we going to do that with you living in LA and me in Grand Rapids, remember?"

"So, I'll apply to the Grand Rapids fire department and as soon as I get a job offer, I'll move." Mike said firmly.

Tammy thought about his offer, thinking about how close she knew Mike and the rest of his shiftmates were. "No."

"No?" Mike asked confused. "You mean you don't want to marry me?"

"No, I mean, I can't let you leave everybody here, just to be with me."

"Tammy, you mean everything to me. The past few months have been the hardest in my whole life. I don't want to be separated from you anymore."

"I don't want to be separated from you either, but think about it Mike. Both of your families are here. The Stoker's and your family at work. I can't pull you away from them." Tammy explained.

"There's always the telephone. I'll keep in touch with them." He offered.

"I was trying to say that it'd be better if I move here. You have your family here. You wouldn't have to leave your close friends behind. And remember, I've got family here too. I'm sure Johnny would be thrilled if I moved here. What's keeping me in Grand Rapids? The only things I have there are my friends, and my job. Everybody I love is here in California."

"You mean it?"

"Yeah, I mean it."

"So then you'll marry me?"

"Yes, Mike, I'll marry you." She smiled at him. He reached up and pulled her down to kiss him.

"Come on, let's break the news to Johnny, that I'm gonna be his cousin-in-law soon." Mike laughed, Tammy stood up out of his lap, and they walked hand in hand over to Johnny and Roy to tell them the news.

                                                                                      THE END

Author's note: Thanks to Janet for the wonderful story idea. The places and events, other than the fictitious fireman's Olympics, mentioned in the story existed in the Grand Rapids area in the 70's to the best of my recollection, (even Big Sid's escape, who, by the way was found eventually), and although I haven't lived there in over 10 years, in my heart it is still my "hometown".   Hope you all enjoyed the story, as much as I did writing it.

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