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Nav
Theragingfireahead shot heat down the back of his gear. The smoke clouded his vision but he pushed through, determined to locate the final few people stuck in the factory building.
“Fire department, call out!” he yelled out into the nothingness remaining of the building. He listened intently, waiting for a response. Just as he was about to signal to the crew to turn around, he heard a faint cry off in the northwest corner of the building. He powered through, getting low as he came upon two teenagers huddled together coughing. The rookie tagging along his tail rushed forward to grab one of the teens and they hoisted them out of the building together, fighting against the angry flames enveloping the blazing walls. He settled the young woman onto a stretcher and nodded toward the paramedics who resumed care for her. The teens appeared to be fine, albeit a little shocked by the incident.
He threw his hand on the rookie, Williams’, back as they walked together back to the truck. “Good work back there, Rook.” Nav watched as Williams nodded his head and stepped away, heading off to start overhaul on the factory. Nav continued to walk away from the fire and toward the truck, grabbing a bottle of water on the way. He tipped his head back, pouring the cool water against the heat that remained on his face before tossing the bottle back into the rig and joining his team to finish up on the scene.
Hours later, Nav flopped onto a bed in the bunkhouse and pulled his phone from his pocket, browsing through the notifications he missed throughout the day. To his surprise, he had a call from his brother, Adam. At the end of his shift, he was planning to drive straight to Otsego to leave town for a bachelor party for his best friend, Eagle.
He tossed his legs over the side of the bed and walked out of the bunkhouse so he could call him back. He paced back and forth in the lounge, running his free hand through his hair.
“Hello, Nav,” Adam’s voice consumed the quiet room.
“Hey Adam, just saw you called.”
“Ah, yeah. Well, I wanted to let you know that Lexie has decided to join us in St. Thomas after all, which means the girls are all back on board, too.”
Nav took a deep breath as he processed. When the trip was originally planned, Lexie and Oliver were on the itinerary, but after he died, Lexie backed out. Then none of the women felt comfortable leaving her behind, so they backed out too. Nav was honestly surprised the guys still wanted to go without their women, but he wasn’t going to complain about a week in St. Thomas.
“Well, fuck. Do you think I should dip out?” Nav leaned his elbows against the counter.
“That’s up to you, but I don’t think you would need to.”
“I just don’t want Lexie to feel uncomfortable. You know we haven’t talked in a year…and we’ve never talked about what happened between us.”
“Dude, she was married. Clearly, she doesn’t give a shit.”
“Okay, harsh. I think maybe she gives a little shit.”
“Nah, quit being a dumbass. You’re coming. No one cares about your screw-ups. It’s not like it’s news to any of us.”
Nav rolled his eyes. His brother could be such an asshole.
“Alright, whatever. I need to get some sleep before I get out of here. I’ll see you later.”
Nav hung up the phone and whirled around, leaning his back against the counter and looking absent-mindedly at the news playing on the TV. He was eager to spend some time away from eating fire, but his eagerness was laced with concern as he thought about seeing Lexie for the first time since shebroke his heart. In all honesty, Lexie never did anything wrong. She was always kind, always patient, and always on his side until he made the choice to step away first. When it came time to choose, Nav didn’t choose Lexie and he would never forgive himself for letting her go. He had tried to get her back but arrived nine months too late.
As he approached his car he groaned internally and flashed a small smile across his face, running his hand across the stubble that had grown in over the last 48 hours.
“Victoria, what are you doing here?” he asked.
“Well hello to you too, baby,” she said as she stepped forward and adjusted the collar of his shirt, leaving her hands to linger on his chest.
Nav glanced down and tilted his lips into a tight smile. “What are you doing here, Vi?”
She leaned her body against his, pressing her breasts against his chest as her lips grazed across his ear. “Thought maybe you’d be up for a quickie before your little trip.” She placed a kiss on the side of Nav’s neck and in response, he placed his hands on her shoulders, taking a step back. Her long, sleek black hair brushed against the tips of his fingers. He gazed into her deep brown eyes willing himself to feel anything other than lust for her, but right now, the bulge growing against his jeans was betraying him. He opened his mouth to speak, but she shrugged his hands off her shoulders and took a step forward, pressing herself against him again. He lifted his head up releasing a slight gasp as her hand casually brushed against the front of his jeans. Despite his growing need, he shook his head as he took another step back.
“Vi, I have to get to Otsego. The guys are leaving in…” he flipped his watch over to check the time, “exactly one hour, which means I have to get out of here.”
A pout formed on her face and he reached for her, pulling her in for a hug. “I’ll call you when I get back to town.”
She rolled her eyes and finally stepped back giving him breathing room. “I look forward to it.”
He nodded his head at her and walked to the driver-side door, quickly lowering himself into the seat and turning the car on. He watched as she blew him a kiss through the window and stalked back to the Mercedes she drove to the station in.
Victoria came into Nav’s life shortly after leaving Otsego. They met at Basic Training and immediately found themselves in bed together, sneaking around like a bunch of teenagers. It wasn’t until he returned home briefly during the summer that he began to regret Victoria, but learning that Lexie had quickly moved on to marriage, Nav couldn’t ever get himself to let Vi go. She followed him to Etville using Daddy’s money to purchase an apartment downtown. Nav reluctantly moved in and lived with Vi until a volatile fight broke out a year later. He had been living on his own in a crummy studio apartment near the station since then. Despite the toxicity of whatever he and Vi had… he always found himself crawling back. She was a drug and one he didn’t even really like, but she satisfied a need. Nav had no interest in dating other people or trying to find someone he could allow himself to commit to. He simply didn’t have the time for romance or love or long-term anything. He just wanted a good fuck every now and then and that’s what Victoria was to him. For the most part, she was aware of his stance but continued to stick around in hopes that she could tame him. He knew it wouldn’t happen and distanced himself anytime she talked about future plans with him. He knew it wasn’t fair to Victoria but he also didn’t care. Just like every other woman in his life, he knew she wouldn’t stick around, even if he committed to a lifetime with her, and that was not a heartbreak he was willing to endure again.
