Page 51 of Hearts on Fire

Scotti felt her heart leap. Naomi loved her after all. She held Naomi tightly to her and Naomi leaned into her.

She checked her air gauge again and she checked Naomi’s.

The eery wailing of their emergency sirens continued in the background alongside the crackling of the flames which just got louder and louder.

Just as she had gotten everything she ever wanted, she was going to lose it all.

“Mayday! Mayday!” Scotti called into her radio. “Please, come in… someone… anyone…”

16

Naomi

Naomi felt like she was floating in another world. Was she dead?

“Doctor Crane…”

“Naomi…”

Naomi opened her eyes to see the hospital. She could recognise a hospital room when she saw one.

She narrowed her eyes. She was in the ER. She was on a bed. She must have made it out of the fire somehow. She was alive. Thank god.

She panicked and sat bolt upright. She saw Dr. Cora Hope and Dr. Agnes Frame. She was grateful to be with them and alive, but there was only one person she needed to see right now. “Scotti! Where is she? Is she ok?”

Cora stood aside and behind her, just coming slowly through the doorway to her room wearing her red fire department T shirt that had just about survived their ordeal was Scotti.

Naomi would have jumped out of the bed but she realised she was attached to an oxygen mask. She pulled it off her.

Tears streamed from her eyes as she sat on the edge of the bed holding Scotti’s face in her hands and kissing her repeatedly all over.

“Oh.. Scotti… I love you…”

In between kisses the words poured out that she had been dying to say all along and she meant them now with every fiber of her being. She could smell that beautifully familiar sweet smokiness of Scotti

“I’m so sorry…”

“Are you ok?”

“I’ll support you always, you know…”

“I want you to do what you love…”

“I can never ever be without you again…”

She felt Scotti’s strong hands on her shoulders, pulling her back. She never wanted to let go of Scotti. Never wanted to stop kissing her. But she let Scotti pull her back.

“I love you, too.” Scotti smiled at her. Battered, bruised, dirty, bloodied, beautiful Scotti.

“How did we get out?” Naomi asked.

“Your air ran out. I knew you would be dead within a minute if I didn’t do something drastic. I dragged you through the fire and broke down a wall. Luckily the wall was compromised anyway and my team was on the other side. They saved us.”

“You saved me, Scotti. Again. You are a hero and I can’t believe I ever wanted you to stop. Of course, I’m scared of losing you. But I’ve learnt to understand that fear and process my feelings over losing Sasha.”

Naomi sighed deeply. Why had it taken them almost dying for everything to become so clear?

“I promise things will be different now, Scotti. I promise I will give you all the love and support you deserve. If you can forgive me, please let me spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”

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