Letters

May 2023

Andy Herrera arrived at the station early that morning. Her shift didn't start for almost an hour, but she wanted some time to herself before the A-shift began arriving. This morning, for the first time, she was walking into Station 19 as the captain--not interim, not temporary. This house was hers, and despite Theo's out-of-line comments, it was a job she had earned. Maybe she hadn't been ready the first time she was up for the job, but after serving as the acting captain at 23, and then helping keep the team together as Beckett spiraled out of control, she had no doubts that she was ready to lead, and she was sure that almost all of her colleagues agreed.

Before entering the captain's office, she paused for a moment before the memorial case that held a picture of her father.

"I did it, Papi," she whispered as she looked at his portrait.

Standing there alone, she took a somewhat shaky deep breath and let it out slowly. Intellectually, she knew she had earned the job, but emotionally, she felt all over the place. She was proud that she had earned the promotion, and excited for the opportunity to have a positive impact on the station that she had always considered a second home, but she was also nervous, and a bit sad. She knew from watching both Maya and Theo struggle to find their way as captain that leading came with its own set of challenges, and she wasn't naive enough to think she would make the transition without some missteps along the way. The sorrow came from the fact that while she had her friends on the A-shift, and her cousin Michelle, she still felt alone. Her dad was gone, and her relationship with her mother was, if she was honest with herself, superficial. They laughed over Zoom about dates and outfits, but that was about as deep as their relationship went.

Noise from upstairs as the members of the D-shift began to wake up and get ready to leave brought Andy's attention back to the present. Using her reflection in the glass on the display case, she checked to make sure her uniform was perfect before pulling the key to her office out of her pocket.

As she opened the door, her attention was drawn to the small white box on her desk. It had not been there when she had set up her office the previous day. Looking more closely at the box, she saw the unmistakable lettering of her favorite bakery in Seattle. Opening the lid, she sighed with contentment as the buttery, nutty aroma from the almond croissant reached her nose.

Glancing to the side of the box, she noticed an envelope, her name written on the front in Robert's neat print. Of course, the croissant was from him. The bakery was within walking distance from his home, and they had spent many mornings there. Robert wasn't much for sweets, generally preferring to have a smoothie at home and only ordering a black coffee at the bakery, but without fail, as she ate, he would reach across the table to the pastry she had chosen, and pull off a bite. Over time, it became a source of playful competition. She'd try to protect her breakfast and he'd do his best to distract her in order to sneak a taste.

The memory made her smile as she picked up the note addressed to her. Robert's congratulations at the gala had felt authentic to her, but she knew it had to sting that she was the one in the captain's office, not him.

Opening the letter, she read what he had written.

Andy,

I thought about getting you some flowers to celebrate your first day but knew you would probably appreciate the croissant more.

I hope you know that your dad would be so proud of you today. He never once doubted that you would be captain. In fact, he told me that one day he wanted you to be fire chief, and if that's something you want, I know that you'll get there.

It's not always easy to be the boss, and I'm sure you and I will butt heads at times, but I wanted you to know that at the end of the day, I'll always have your back.

Robert

P.S. Don't worry, I didn't pick the lock to your office. Lieutenant Stuart on the D shift has an extra key so they can access the training manuals if needed. I convinced him to let me in.

With the note from Robert in one hand, Andy sat down in the captain's chair and took a bite of the pastry. She closed her eyes and groaned softly as she savored the sweet treat. Opening her eyes, she glanced at his words again. Somehow he knew exactly what to say to calm her nerves and exactly what gift to put on her desk to start her day off right. It also felt good that despite the complex emotions he must be feeling, he was willing to help her celebrate this day.

She savored the remaining bites of the croissant as the A-shift firefighters began to enter the station. They waved and smiled as they headed upstairs to change and grab some breakfast. Andy allowed them their time together but exited the office as the shift officially began.

"Lineup in five" she called up the stairs, as she walked to the barn.

"Aye, aye, Captain," she heard Travis call out, and she smiled at his response.

Teasing aside, of all the firefighters on the A shift, she was not concerned about him. As long as she did her job, and did it well, she knew he would accept her as captain. He knew all too well the tragedies that could occur with a poor leader.

A few minutes later, as she stood in front of the A-shift firefighters for the first time as the captain of Station 19, she glanced at Robert for just a second and nodded her head just slightly to acknowledge his gift, and with the slightest of smiles on his face, he nodded back.

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Hi Friends!

Unfortunately, the muse has been rather uncooperative lately. However, with no end in sight to the writers' and actors' strikes, I'm worried that we will not get to see Andy settling in as captain, so I thought I  would fill in the gap.

The title is "Letters" so if the muse sticks around, maybe there will be more letters between Robert and Andy. Let me know what you think. Would you like a part 2...and what do you think they might write about?