The firefighter's smile

Chapter One

One day, James Belushi said that accidents happen, whether they're car accidents, friendly fire, drug overdoses. Accidents happen, and they're tragic. It's like a bomb that goes off and pieces of shrapnel rip into the flesh of the family. It's the families that need the compassion, because everywhere they walk, every day, someone reminds them of their loss.

It's right. Charly's accident was a bomb who destroyed her family. Her family of heart not her family of blood who found consolation in the fact that her sweet daughter and sister went back home in New York City at almost eight hundred miles of the man she loves and they hate. If for Charly's family her accident is the perfect opportunity to rewrite the story of her life, for Charly the enthusiasm of her family sounds like a masquerade. She has always been someone who always doubts about what people say to her or do to her and her amnesia didn't erase that. For a couple of weeks, Charly started thinking that her parents lie to her because she cannot believe that since she was graduate she always lived in NYC and she didn't make any studies. She had the feeling that a major part of her life isn't in this city. So, one day, during a dinner she said to her parents that she knows the truth. She was bluffing and her parents fell into it. They confessed to her that her accident didn't happen in NYC but in Chicago. Feeling betrayed, Charly started to pack her bags and leave her parents' house overnight.

Since the 4th of July of the accident, the brotherhood knew of the 51 shattered and nevertheless his good will Chief Boden can't do anything to change that. When Charly was in the coma everything was fine, everyone was here to support Severide but it's when Charly woke up that everything goes wrong. That begins with the words of the doctor, who one year after everything resonate again in the brain of the Squad 3 Lieutenant: "I'm sorry Kelly but you can't see her. She's awake but you have to know that she doesn't remember anything, not even you, so see you can create more damages and for her, we can't take this risk ." So, since this day Kelly never saw Charly again and he fell into a hole that seems to him bottomless. Like in hope to kill the pain, he started drinking alcohol, more and more. A new bar for a new day. He refuses the help of his brothers in arms at the very point that he sent, his best friend and all those who wanted to help him, shit. No one wants to talk to him anymore even if they understand that he goes through something bigger than him.

When Charly arrived in Chicago it was a year to the day that everything change for her and for her heart's family. A heart's family on which she could lean when she didn't go well, the same family that she nowadays doesn't know the existence. The windy city makes Charly a little nervous. Be here, after all, what happen and without any memories, it's something that would scare everybody.

"Hi, Charly!", a young lady said to her whereas she is walking on the street.

"So, you know me", Charly replied surprised.

"Of course I know you Charly. I'm Erin from the 21st District, CPD" Erin added before remembering what Severide said about Charly: she's amnesiac since this damn accident. "It was great to see you again but I've to go. See you soon!"

Charly doesn't have the time to say something more than Erin was already out of her sight. Totally lose the former firefighter on Truck 81 stays paralyzed in the middle of the sidewalk, her eyes fixed on the road where the vehicles park to let pass the imposing fire trucks. It's their howling sirens and their flashing lights who get Charly out of her thinkings. From where she is, she can perfectly see the firefighters go down of the truck then the number of their firehouse. 51. During something like five or ten seconds, she saw herself saying at the phone to her mother that she finally find a job as a paramedic on one of the Chicago firehouse. The 51. After more than five hours of trying to convince herself that she has to go to this famous firehouse, Charly finished asking a pedestrian what is the direction.

Charly stopped herself in the opposite sidewalk at the firehouse looking this latter. For the second time of the day, an image float of the past invades her mind. She suddenly thanks to her memory in standby, remembers that many years ago, she was in here, on this sidewalk, looking anxiously the entrance of the garage where no trucks were parked, like today. If she has somewhere to go, Charly would probably flee instead of cross the road. Step by step, not pretty sure that the good way to the recovery, the former paramedic of the 51 walks in the garage of her former firehouse. She glances at the shoes of the firemen gone fight the flames before to notice she wasn't alone.

"Can I help you ?" a man voice surprised her in the back.

"Euhm... No. You... Forget that" Charly retorted, ready to leave.

"Smith?" the same person blurted out.

At the hearing of her family name, Charly eventually turns around to makes face to a black man, imposing size and very authoritative facial expression. He must be the Chief of this rescue center. Suddenly and by surprise, the Chief who definitely know her, hold her for a hug. For Charly, who is someone who always panics fast, this sudden hug from someone who for her is a stranger creates on her a panic attack that the Chief knows how to calm for having worked with her.

"Just take a deep breath" He whispered.

"I got the impression that I'm totally crazy. People know me but I don't who people is. It's like I'm locked in my own body" Charly confessed.

"That just spend a year today you got this accident and you pass six months in a coma. Recovery takes time Smith" Chief Boden replied.

"Yeah, I know". Charly Smith said. "I think, I should go" she added at the hearing of the fire trucks' engines.

"It's really what you want Charly ?" Boden challenged. "They need to see you. After your accident, all the good relationships shattered and I tried, I swear to God that I tried by a different way to fix it but..."

"Genuine stubborn" Charly interrupted.

"How do you know that?" The Battalion Chief asked surprised.

"If there is something that my amnesia didn't take it's my stubbornness and if I've worked here I think that I've worked with stubborn. Stubborn is like a tradition in rescue middle" Charly smiled.

The Chief decides to accompany Charly in the common room, in the goal to feel the mood of his firemen before anything else.

"Everything okay?" Chief asked.

"Normal fire, normal intervention, normal ambiance" Captain Matthew Casey at the head of the Truck 81 responded.

At the answer of his captain, the Chief lets out a sigh of despair.

"Where is Severide ?" Wallace moaned seeing Capp instead of his Squad 3 Lieutenant at the front of the truck.

"No idea" Capp continued.

"You have a visitor so I ask you to welcome her as the former 51 would welcome her" Boden ordered.

"Yes Chief" All replied.

All the firefighters move towards the common room to eat or drink Something as after any intervention like that. But today, in the common room, the firefighters make face to a woman, the back of a woman, blonde hair. When she makes face to them, the Boden's men let out a cry of surprise.

"Charly!" Herrmann yelled rushing towards her to take her in his arms.

"No physical contact" she dodged.

"Okay" Christopher stuttered surprised.

"You have to know that I do not remember any of you and I just remember that I've worked at the 51, only for six hours". Charly explained looking alternately the smile of the firefighters. "It's not your..."

"What?" Casey asked.

"Since the day I woke up I remember one thing, the firefighter's smile. The smile of the firefighter who gets me out of the car"

"You should have to come to Molly's tonight, I think he gonna be here" Otis replied.

"Molly's?"

"Our bar" He added. 

__________________________________

So, this is the first chapter. I hope you love it.
Sorry for the fault.
Comment & Vote if you want an other chapter.
See u soon!❤