Mariana nodded along to the elevator music as they waited patiently to reach their floor. She hummed along to the tune and nudged her foot against Eddie's. He rolled his eyes at her antics and she scoffed at his refusal to participate.
"Woah, hey." Buck cut through the quiet. "Hollywood Reservoir is like two and a half billion gallons. Where's all that water gonna go?"
"My mom survived the dam break in the 60s," Hen said. "Baldwin Hills. Water only ever wants to go in one direction - out to sea."
Mariana shuddered at the thought of her last interaction with the ocean. The elevator dinged and she pulled her mask up, settling it firmly across her nose just as the doors slid open to reveal the front half of the bus hanging precariously out of the window.
"This is definitely our stop," Chimney muttered as he, Bobby, and Hen exited the elevator.
"Hey, at least it's not a tsunami, right?"
Mariana and Buck turned their heads to stare at the brunet, sharing similar looks of exasperation. He smiled sheepishly and Mariana shook her head in disbelief.
"You're lucky you're pretty, Diaz."
The 118's Terrible Trio worked quickly to gear up and get the ropes ready. Eddie secured the lines to the lever and sent a thumbs up to his teammates. Buck and Mariana headed towards the ledge and looked down at the bus balancing like a see saw.
"Ready?" Buck asked.
"Of course. It'll be fun," she commented before turning her back to the street and starting her descent down. They slowly but surely repelled down towards the bus and Mariana was struck with the realization that it had been a long time since she'd last done a repel rescue.
"This is Diaz," Eddie said over the radio. "Be advised. Buck and Mari's about to touch down. Once they're there, I'll send down the webbing to secure the bus."
The two best friends slowly stepped onto the bus, feeling it rock under their feet. Mariana shot a warning look at Buck as she settled her feet flat against the metal and waited for it to stop rocking. Buck grinned once it stopped moving and flashed her a thumbs up.
"We've landed. Not too bad. Should be able to get this thing stable," Buck reported. He stepped forward but Mariana shot her arm out, stopping him from moving as she sniffed the air.
"Good news, Cap," she announced. "Automatic exfil's working on the natural gas tanks up here. At least we know this thing's not gonna explode."
The two worked like a well-oiled machine, securing the hooks and cribbing as soon as Eddie tossed them down. Mariana worked on the right side as Buck worked on the left, calling out weak points to each other.
"Guys, where are we at?" Bobby said over the radio.
"Second tie-down point is secure," Buck replied. "We're heading for the middle."
Mariana made her way around the bus just in time to see Buck securing the middle. "Second hook's in, Cap."
"We're secure up here," Eddie chimed in.
"Cap!" Buck shouted. "There's someone else down here."
Mariana swore under her breath and maneuvered herself next to Buck, crouching down so she could see the guy. He was pinned under the bus and appeared unresponsive. She stripped off her glove and reached under to check for a pulse, partly surprised to even find one.
"Chimney, he's got a pulse," she called out as he yanked some debris out and wiggled under the bus.
"We've got a live one, Cap!" Chimney exclaimed.
YOU ARE READING
In Flames // 9-1-1 Fox (seasons 1-4)
Fanfiction"Keep your confessions Cause babe I'm no saint We're playing with fire" - In Flames, Digital Daggers Mariana Ramirez doesn't let people into her life. At twenty-six, she has seen her fair share of loss not only in her life but also in her ER. After...
