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Eli was used to the calls. Used to the heat, the panicked people, the devastation left behind. He was used to the job. It was a job he chose, his twin brother graduating from the academy right after him because if he was gonna “risk his life like an absolute moron”, then Atlas wasn’t going to let him do it alone.
They had each other’s backs on the job from the day Atlas joined his firehouse. Their captain, Griffin, was barely older than either of them, rising through the ranks quickly, and no less important to them than the medics, Zeph and Shreya, that worked alongside them.
Some days were hard, calls that ended with a loss were the worst, but some days were good, calls that were easy or tough but everyone made it out.
Their team worked.
When the alarm rang, Eli was already halfway into his turnout gear when Griffin’s request made his gut freeze.
“Make sure the truck is stocked with smaller oxygen masks. Call is at a middle school.”
The calls with kids were the worst.
As the ladder truck pulled to a stop, the principal was running over to Griffin, her frazzled curly hair shaking with every step, “I- I’m so sorry. Our science teacher said one of the students was over eager in mixing compounds.”
“Can you direct us to the teacher?” Eli asked quickly, “We need to know what kind of fire we’re dealing with.”
She nodded, dodging around people left and right as they approached a brunette man wearing a suit that definitely looked out of place at a public school, “Mister Harrington, they need to know what chemicals you were mixing.”
“Uh, I- I’m sorry, Principal Swann, I’m not sure!” The man ran a hand through his disheveled hair, Eli shouldn’t be paying attention to how stupidly pretty he was when the classroom where the fire started was nearly engulfed already, “Layla had been mixing her ingredients next to the chemical table and the potassium must have gotten wet because there was a spark and-“ He spun suddenly, recounting the coughing students in front of him, “Layla- Layla isn’t here! Ms D’Yew! Aster, is Layla with your students?”
The woman winced sympathetically as she broke the news, “No, Beckett, I’m sorry, I haven’t seen her.”
Before Eli could fully process, the teacher tried to bolt back toward the doors, and he practically clotheslined him as his arm shot out, “Whoa, whoa- sir, you can’t go back in there.”
“I promised! I promised I’d take care of her!”
“You can do that by letting me do my job.” Eli told him sternly.
“I’m not leaving her-“
“Your student will not want you to kill yourself to get her out!” Eli snapped, “Shreya, Zeph, keep an eye on him. Cap, we’re gonna need the magnesium foam, he’s not sure which chemicals caused the fire!”
“Copy that. Eckhart twins, gear up!” Griffin tapped each of their helmets when they were clicked into place, Eli strapped an extra oxygen tank to his back.
“We’re gonna find her. You need to trust us to do our jobs.” Eli waited until he could see the man stop fighting Zeph’s hold on him, turning to his brother as they knocked their gloves fists together before running in.
Even as they passed rooms that weren’t effected by the blaze, they knocked on every door. Checked every closet. Called her name.
Finally, just before the science room that essentially no longer existed, Eli heard it. “Atlas, hold up-“
Silence.
Silence.
A scared voice calling for help.
“Layla?” Eli called out, his brother unmoving at his side, “Layla, if you can hear me, I need you to hit the wall! Can you do that for me?”
A thump, just down the hall.
Atlas clicked onto the radio, “Cap, is there a room attached to the science classroom? One that wouldn’t be accessible from the hall?”
“Teacher says it’s the supply room for the class. If the fire spreads-“
“We got it, Cap,” his twin grunted, “We aren’t getting through that fire with her.”
“So we go through the wall.” Eli hefted the ax in his hands, leaning toward the wall blocking them, “Layla, I need you to get as far from this wall as you can, okay? We need to bust through and we don’t want to hurt you. Give me two quick thumps if you understand, and then back up, okay?”
Thump. Thump.
Carrying a fourteen year old girl in his arms, oxygen mask secured to her face, Eli isn’t prepared for that stupidly pretty teacher to be skidding to a stop in front of him, “Oh- Layla, I’m gonna meet you at the hospital, okay? Principal Swann has already called in the substitute.”
His hands are flitting around the space between them, clearly wanting to help but unsure what to do. Eli decided to pity him while Atlas worked the other members of the fireteam to get the foam spread over the fire, “She’s just got some smoke inhalation from the looks of things. You must teach your students well- when she realized she couldn’t get around the fire, she locked herself in that room instead of trying to go through it.”
“Layla is my top student,” the cute teacher smiled softly, “I’m not surprised she’d find a smart way to keep herself safe.”
“Elder Eckhart, let’s move! Get the girl on the gurney!”
“You got it, Cap!” Eli gave him a grin, carefully laying her down and making sure the mask stayed in place, “You’ve done really well, okay, Layla? You listened to me better than most adults do in a crisis.” Layla chuckled haphazardly, coughing with a smile of amusement on her face, “Hell, your own teacher was gonna run back in there just to save you. But you did good, kid. So my friend here? His name is Zeph. He’s gonna take care of you, get you to the hospital. Just listen to him like you did to me, okay?”
“Okay.” She nodded, pulling the mask away just enough to talk to him, “Thank you. And can you tell Uncle Beck that I’m sorry?” Uncle? That explains why he tried.
“Oh, kiddo,” Eli’s heart panged, “He’s not mad, I promise. He was just worried about you.”
“I know. He’s a great teacher.” She seemed to flush, the heat of the fire having no impact to her skin at this point, “But I was distracted. That’s why I knocked over the supplies.”
Eli could see her eyes flicker over, even as she laid there, to a girl looking concerned. He had to grin softly, “I see. I’ll talk to Mister Harrington for you. You just keep that mask on and listen to my friends, okay, kid?”
She nodded sheepishly, pulling the mask back over her face. Zeph chuckled, hopping into the back as Eli loaded the gurney up, “They’ve got the fire handled, you talk to the teacher and we’ll meet you back at the station.”
The firefighter gave a mock salute, laughing when the medic stuck his tongue out in response, before making his way back to the teacher, “Mister Harrington?”
“Yes!” He jolted, looking far more alert and aware than most people do on the scenes, “Is Layla alright?”
“She’s fine,” Eli assured quickly, “En route now, but she wanted to apologize. Guess she got distracted earlier, she felt bad.” He let his gaze flick to the girl from before briefly.
The teacher sighed, running a hand through his already mussed up hair, “I wish I could say I was surprised. She- she came to me not long ago. Asked questions about noticing girls.” Eli raised an eyebrow, teasing grin stretching across his face, but he doesn’t get a word out before the man sighs with a full blush, “She may have noticed a pride flag Principal Swann gave me in the pencil holder on my desk.”
“Adorable,” he grinned wider, genuine as could be before Griffin was calling him back to the truck, “Just don’t be too hard on her, okay, Pretty Boy? She’s worried.” He started walking backward toward his team, chuckling softly as the blush seemed to grow deeper, before finally turning and climbing in beside his brother as Atlas gave him a smirk.
Two days later, he was arguing with Atlas in the kitchen of the station, trying to make lunch for the team while his brother tried to help, “You are a literal cooking demon.”
“I am not that bad!”
“I’ve literally seen you burn water.” Eli deadpanned, “I really thought that was a myth until you proved it possible.”
Griffin cleaned his throat, reaching the top of the stairs as Atlas grumbled and stole veggie sticks from a tray on the counter, “Elder Eckhart, you have a visitor.”
“I beg you, Cap,” Eli chuckled, already heading toward the stairs, “Just use our first names once in a while. And don’t let Atlas near the food!”
“Not on your life.” Griffin responds, making Eli laugh louder as he reaches the first floor. It doesn’t take him more than a few seconds to find the odd one out, seeing as his team wears uniforms, and they’re adults.
It takes him another second to recognize the brightly smiling girl waiting for him, “Layla?”
She rushed forward as soon as he said her name, as soon as she was sure he knew who she was, wrapping her arms around him, “Hi,” her voice was muffled against his uniform, but he could feel her smile as he hugged her back, “I wanted to say thank you. For saving me.”
Eli chuckled as she pulled away, kneeling down, “Come on, kid. No one was gonna lose you that day. Mister Harrington was ready and raring to charge in after you himself.”
The teenager looked behind her, and for the first time he realized there was another person, “He wanted to thank you, too.”
“Yes,” the teacher stepped forward, “Thank you. For keeping me from doing something stupid, and for saving my favorite niece.”
“Your only niece,” The girl rolled her eyes, “Mom would’ve given you such a stern talk for trying to rush back in.”
The man chuckled softly, “Probably. But I promised I’d keep you safe, and I’ll always do what I can for that.”
“You did good.” Eli told him seriously, “You let me do my job, you showed her how to be smart.”
The girl seemed to try to communicate with her uncle, her eyes darting and widening and narrowing like they were having a silent argument. The firefighter found it amusing as he wondered who would win.
When the man sighed, Eli had to suppress a chuckle, knowing Layla had won whatever the debate was.
Mister Harrington looked at him, gnawing at his lip, “Layla, please step away at the very least.” She snickered, thanking Eli one last time before she was bouncing out of the firehouse. “I adore her, but she is a menace.”
“Probably just like her mom, then, huh?”
Beckett laughed again, smiling wider as he looked back at the door she’d left through, “She definitely gets it from her. She gets all her good qualities, too, but especially the genes to drive me crazy.”
Eli grinned. It was no secret among the firehouse that he loved kids, Zeph usually teased the hell out of him for it. He especially loved kids like Layla, who could give adults as much shit as they got in return. “She’s a great kid.” He nodded, “So what argument did you just lose?”
The pretty man sighed, “She is… rather insistent that I ask you on a date.”
Suddenly, Eli’s grin felt a little stiff on his face. Sure, the teacher was pretty, so pretty that Eli had had a bit of a crush on him. But… “You really don’t need to do that just because she wants you to.”
Beckett’s face flushed again, “I am so sorry- I misread- You aren’t into men, are you?”
“No, no- I am,” Eli sighed, running a hand over his face, “But I don’t want you to be forced to be into me.”
A small smile took over the brunette’s face, “I feel like I misspoke. I should have said ‘I’m sorry, but my niece is so annoyed with me for gushing about the big, strong, hot guy that saved her, can you please put her out of her misery and let me take you to dinner?’”
Before Eli can reel his stunned brain back in enough to speak, Shreya is hopping out of the back of the ambulance from restocking, looking at him like he’s the dumbest creature she’s ever met- and that’s saying a lot when her partner is Zeph, “If you don’t say yes, Eckhart, I will.”
That broke the stupefied spell, making him laugh as he looked at the man in front of him, who was now such a deep red that the firefighter was a little concerned he’d pass out, “Yes. I’d love to.”
Their first date involved a restaurant far fancier than Eli would ever set foot into on his own, followed by their second where he showed Beckett the joys of a food truck. Their third turned into a home date when Layla was unexpectedly sick, and though Beckett kept apologizing, Eli was perfectly happy making her soup while he cooked a good meal for his boyfriend.
Beckett told him about how he’d lost his sister, how Layla lost her mom and had a dad that left when she was too young to understand. Eli told him about deciding to be a firefighter after he was saved in a fire that killed his parents, how his brother had always been his rock.
He had always felt like an outsider, someone that was pushing himself on a family that was already their own. But Layla always insisted he join them, Beckett always made him feel welcome.
It was nine months later, right at the start of summer break, when the bliss left his chest for a feeling of cold terror.
Eli was at the end of a twelve hour shift, a day of non stop calls, only a half hour to go and he was supposed to meet Beckett and Layla for dinner.
And as soon as the team sat in the lounge, the alarm was ringing.
Heaving a groan from deep in his chest, Eli missed the address until the engine was already pulling into the parking lot.
“Eli, isn’t that Beck’s car?” Following his brother’s finger, Eli felt his blood go cold as he snapped his head over to look at the restaurant’s sign.
“I- I’m supposed to meet him here when shift ends. He’s here!” He slips away before Atlas can stop him, “Cap!”
Griffin is looking at the damage, not looking over at his team yet, “Dispatch said the fire started in the kitchen, looks like the coding wasn’t up to date if the flames are spreading this quickly. If we don’t act soon-“
“Cap, Beckett and Layla are in there!” Eli could’ve sworn Griffin would give himself whiplash or a pulled muscle with how quickly his head turned his way, “I’m not staying behind.” He demanded instantly.
The Captain shook his head, “I don’t expect you to. Eckhart twins, gear up-“ he stubbed his finger into Eli’s chest, “But you stay together.”
“Copy that, Cap.” Atlas grunted, eyes locked on Eli as they strapped their tanks on, “He won’t be out of my sight.”
Eli knew, realistically, that he shouldn’t even be on the scene. When the call is too personal, when people you love are involved, shit can go sideways faster than anyone expects because tunnel vision is a powerful thing.
But he’ll be damned if he can’t control himself long enough to save the love of his life and his favorite kid in the world.
When the fire started, it spread so fast and people around them panicked so quickly that Beckett knew he risked Layla getting hurt if he tried to rush her out.
So instead he remembered all the things he’d learned from Eli. He doused their napkins with water to cover their mouths, got Layla close to the floor, hunkered under a table when the flames engulfed the ceiling. Beckett remembered listening to that long lecture, one he willingly wanted to hear, about how if a roof were to collapse then your best chance was to create a pocket of space so you couldn’t get crushed. He just hoped the table was sturdy.
“It’s okay, Uncle Beck.” Layla told him, her voice as calm as her eyes as they flickered in the flame, hardly any fear to be seen, “Uncle Eli is gonna find us. He’s gonna save us.”
Beckett felt his chest melt a bit, even amongst the fear that he could lose her, because she never made it seem like Eli joining their family was a problem. She knew that neither of them would ever try to replace Katrina, but she still loved them both like they were the fathers she never had. “You’re right, sunshine.” She wrinkled her nose at the nickname he hadn’t used since she was a little girl, just making him chuckle, “He’ll be here.”
“Penderghast City Fire Department!”
Layla beamed at him as the shout rang out, a voice they knew better than most others they’d ever heard, and she didn’t waste a second calling back, “Uncle Eli!” There were heavy footfalls, a lot of voices as other members of the team caught more people out, but he was beside them as quickly as he could.
“Hey, kiddo, you keep your uncle safe?”
“He’s so much trouble,” She answered dramatically as he helped them both up from the floor.
“Yeah, I-“ Eli was cut off where he’d started leading them toward the door, a loud groan echoing through the dining room that had already been emptied of the rest of the patrons.
“Eli!”
It was his brother’s voice, but he knew what was coming, shoving the two of them toward his twin-
Right as the compromised ceiling finally gave out, and caved right on top of him, right where they’d been standing with him just a few moments before.
The day that Eli allowed himself to say yes to Beckett, allowed himself to enter their lives, he made a promise to himself. As long as he could help it, they’d always have each other, he’d always keep them safe.
Even now as he listened to his brother’s hoarse voice calling his name, losing the last family he had, and he knew Zeph and Shreya were forcing his chosen family out of the building- he was just happy he’d kept that promise.
The first thing he noticed when he woke up was the antiseptic smell, then the annoying beeping of the machines.
He was in the hospital. He hated being a patient, he wasn’t good at sitting still for exams, nearly never listened to the instructions he was given.
But if he was in the hospital, it meant Atlas managed to dig him out. It meant that he had managed to save them, and he didn’t need to leave them behind.
Eli blinked his eyes open, groaning at the bright white that flooded his vision until it could adjust.
“You absolute moron,” he startled at the voice, turning to see Atlas standing in the doorway, but his attention was drawn to warmth engulfing his hand.
Beckett.
He was asleep, Eli’s hand held in his and tucked under his head like he was afraid someone would take it away. “How long have I been out?”
“Just a few hours.” His brother told him, kicking his feet onto Eli’s bed as he sat on his other side. “Poor fool was worried sick about you, Griffin had to offer to take Layla home for the night.”
“Is she-“
“She’s fine,” Atlas rolled his eyes, “Barely a scratch on her. Kept saying she knew you’d come.”
Eli nodded, relieved, and past the ache in his head he felt something weird about his hand. It wasn’t asleep, even with his boyfriend resting on it, but he still knew something was different. His twin seemed to read his mind.
“I told him you’d say yes.”
“Wha-“
Suddenly, Beckett jolted up, eyes widening as he took in Eli’s face, “You’re- you’re okay. You’re awake.”
Eli wanted to answer him, wanted to reassure him, but he was frozen staring at his hand.
Specifically, at the ring on his hand.
His- his fiancé apparently, flushed again. Eli adored that it seemed to be a common occurrence. “I meant to ask properly tonight, but I can- I can take it back it is too soon- you didn’t actually get to answer the question-“
“No,” Eli immediately groaned at how that sounded, “I mean no, don’t take it back. I would’ve said yes.”
Atlas snorted from his chair, snapping a picture on his phone, “Layla is gonna be pissed she missed this, you awkward little shits.”