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English
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Peja's Wonderful World of Makebelieve Import
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Published:
2020-11-04
Completed:
2012-04-15
Words:
1,997
Chapters:
2/2
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3
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9
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2,056

Death is Only the Beginning

Summary:

Dixie McCall smiled to herself as she hung up the phone...that special kind of cat-ate-the-canary smile that women get when they have a secret.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Chapter 1: Chapter 1

Notes:

Category: Het
Fandom: Emergency!
Rating: PG
Pairing: Dixie/Johnny, Dixie/Kel (later)
Archive: Yes .
Content Warning: Some harsh language. Character death.

Chapter Text

Death Is Only the Beginning
by Laura Foxx

 

Dixie McCall smiled to herself as she hung up the phone...that special kind of cat-ate-the-canary smile that women get when they have a secret. She perked up even more as she saw John Gage coming toward the nurses' station. The nurse stepped around front to meet him.

"About time you got around to me," she teased.

He grinned at her. "You were just lonely for my charms."

Dixie kissed the paramedic's cheek. "Among other things." Her smile grew wider. "You're off tomorrow, right?"

"Yep."

"Well..." she drawled, "so am I. We'll have to get together...I've got something I wanted to tell you anyhow."

Johnny's dark eyebrow raised, and he smiled again. He looked so adorable when he did that, Dixie mused...maybe that was why she had fallen head over heels in love with a man 12 years younger than herself. May/December romances weren't always a bad thing.

"Tell me now?" Johnny pleaded.

Dixie laughed. "No, you're just going to have to wait, love. Now scoot. We don't need any more rumors about us flying around this place than there already are."

"That's for sure." Johnny looked around to see if anyone was watching, then kissed her forehead. "I'll see you later, Dix."

"See ya." Dixie smiled yet again, watching him go. They had decided, for obvious reasons, to keep their relationship a secret for the time being. Only their closest friends knew the truth. She turned back to her paperwork, hardly noticing as Kelly Brackett slipped up behind her.

"Dix?"

Dixie jumped slightly, startled, then nodded to him in greeting. "Hi, Kel."

"Johnny's been by, hasn't he?"

"How could you tell?"

"You've got that look again." Brackett shook his head softly, unable to stop himself from noticing yet again how breathtakingly beautiful she was--at least in his opinion. John Gage was a lucky man. Brackett had once been involved with Dixie, but those days were long over. They had mutually decided that it was best for them just to be
friends. It was mostly his fault, he supposed. He'd been afraid to commit for some crazy reason or another. He couldn't remember the reason now--but he didn't guess it mattered anymore. She wasn't his, she wasn't going to be, and that was just the way things were. He'd had his chance, and he'd screwed things up. Who was he to complain
about the state of affairs?

Dixie had noticed the doctor's sometimes-strange behavior around her, but she hadn't linked it to their past romance. She assumed it was simply because he was still getting over the surprise everyone had felt upon discovering that she and Johnny were a couple (well, everyone who knew). The surprise was mainly over the age difference. Everybody had accepted it well enough, but she and Johnny both knew full well that there was still a bit of shock. Had she been in their place, she'd have probably reacted the same way. She finally remembered that Brackett had spoken...she answered him casually, not letting on to her distraction. "Am I really that transparent, Kel?"

"Only to your friends," he assured her. "You seem even more self-satisfied than usual, though. Are you two planning something special...or is it none of my business?"

"Oh, we're planning something, all right," Dixie replied, "but I'm not sure I'm ready to tell anyone just yet." She laughed softly. "It's sort of a secret...and I haven't had the chance to tell him yet."

"Ah, I see. *Those* kind of plans." Brackett chuckled. "Good luck."

"Thanks." Dixie tossed him a friendly smile, and turned back to her work.

"Sure." He shook his head softly, and left.

~~~~~~~~~

A few hours later, things picked up. There was a three-alarm fire in an abandoned warehouse downtown. Station 51 was one of the stations responding. It was discovered that there was a teenage runaway inside the building. Johnny and Roy went in to rescue her, but the building was unstable and could have gone at any moment.

Dixie had heard the commotion over the radio, and was eagerly awaiting news of any kind. Even those who weren't in on the little secret of her relationship with Johnny knew something was bothering her, and gave her a bit of space.

They found the runaway, and got her out of the building. Then it happened. The floor gave out in the room Johnny was standing in. It was no coincidence that this was the same time the bottom fell out of Dixie's world. Johnny had been on the third floor--he'd never had a chance. They tried, but they couldn't bring him back.

Upon hearing the news, Dixie rushed into the staff lounge, not wanting to show her emotions to the world. Once there, she burst into tears. The sobs shook her small frame.

Brackett had heard of the tragedy, and came in to see how Dixie was. He knew this was going to be extremely difficult for her...and he wanted to comfort her. As a friend, not a former lover. His heart nearly broke as he walked in, seeing her crying, so obviously shattered. The doctor walked over to the couch she sat on, and gathered her gently into his arms. She clutched at him, crying harder.

After a few moments, Dixie looked up. "God...why now?"

"There's never a good time for these things to happen," Kel soothed.

"I know," Dixie lamented, "but why *now*? We had so much ahead of us...and...I never got to tell him..."

"I know you're hurting, Dix..." Kel began, but she cut him off.

"No, you don't understand." She looked deep into his eyes, her own brimming with tears. "I was gonna make it special...I was going to tell him tomorrow...he'll never know now..." She sighed, releasing her death grip on Kel's shirt. "Kel...I'm pregnant."
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