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Right as he finished his snack, one of his coworkers came in.
“Another day of training videos?” Tucker Ryland was something of a friend, a local who’d been ahead of Garrick in school, and while they’d both started on engine crews, Tucker had quickly gone the Forest Service route, working as Burn Boss on controlled burns and helping manage unexpected wildfires too. More of a family guy than Garrick, he commanded a ton of respect in the firefighting community. And honestly, his word had probably meant as much as Fred’s in getting Garrick hired so fast. He’d been Garrick’s ride in that morning as well, and as much as Garrick disliked needing favors, he was good company.
“Yeah. That and lots of reading.”
“It will get easier when we have more for you to do. I’ve got a scheduled burn coming up, and you’ll be helping me with coordination.”
“Sounds great.” And it did. Anything more active would be awesome, make him feel more a part of a team again.
“First though, I’ve got my own paperwork—stacks of the applications for entry-level forest technicians. It’s harder than you’d think to find people wanting to do grunt work like digging line and mop-up duty. Everyone wants to be on a hotshot crew these days.”
“True facts. I’m training someone right now who wants a place on a frontline crew. But...actually this might be a good fit for them. It’s another temporary seasonal gig?”
“Yeah. Variable hours, like most of these openings. Competition for full-time hours, that’s fierce. But I’ll do what I can to get people plenty of work. Your rec, that would mean something to me. And it’s good, honest work out there in the field. I’d put in a good word for them if a spot opened up on an engine crew or something else with more action.”
Another thought crept into Garrick’s mind as he mulled over talking Rain into trying for the job. “So...uh...you or someone on your level would technically be the supervisor, right? I wouldn’t want any...issues with continuing to train with this person. We’re...friends.”
“I know you, Nelson. Friend or friend?” Tucker laughed.
“Um. Maybe both?” Garrick itched under his ear. It wasn’t really a coming out thing that had him antsy as much as not wanting to screw up a potential opportunity for Rain that he could really use, both as experience and to get some money in.
“And no, you wouldn’t be the direct supervisor to anyone on the cleanup crew or anything like that. You being...social shouldn’t be an issue as long as it doesn’t affect the work. Fred’s not a huge fan of dating between crew members, but God knows that happens enough. And this isn’t even that. Just stay professional on the clock, and I don’t see a problem. I appreciate the heads-up.”
“Thanks. I’ll mention the opportunity then, see if he can get you an application in quickly if there’s not already one in the queue. Rain’s been applying for a lot of seasonal stuff.”
Tucker’s eyes went wide as Garrick got specific on gender, but if he was truly shocked, he didn’t offer any commentary on that either. Like most of Garrick’s friends, he undoubtedly had some idea that Garrick was pan, even if they’d never had a formal conversation about it. He wasn’t one of the party or bar scene friends, but he’d probably heard something over the years. “Sounds good.”
And now he had another reason to look forward to seeing Rain and Cookie after work, especially once Rain texted that he was staying for dinner, and it wasn’t long after Tucker dropped him off that Rain appeared on the porch in a Bear Bait T-shirt under an unzipped hoodie and silver shorts.
“I’m not sure that you should be wearing that shirt,” Garrick said between laughing. “At least not around here. The actual bears might get ideas. I imagine it makes you pretty damn popular in the Portland bars though.”
“Oh I don’t wear it out. Just for you. Because I knew it would make you laugh, and I knew you were stressed about the doctor business. Heck, the shirt even made Grandma laugh.”
Garrick had to cough at that, still not sure how he felt about Shirley knowing about his and Rain’s...flirtation. But he supposed it was indeed a good sign that she didn’t seem to have an issue with Rain’s sexuality.
“Are you coming for Cookie’s exercise?” Rain glanced down at Garrick, who was in his chair, his work clothes and shoes still on. “It’s okay if you’re too tired after your long day. Doctor plus work. That’s a lot.”
“I’m not tired,” Garrick lied. Actually, he was exhausted even though he’d mainly relied on his chair that day. He guessed his body was still getting used to the hours. “But I am hungry. How about I start the lentil recipe I mentioned?”
