Chapter Text
“So what are your plans for the weekend Holtzy?” Patty wanted to know as she packed her things up Friday afternoon, “please tell me you don’t plan to work on Saturday and Sunday, too.”
“Maybe I’m gonna”, Holtzmann gave back, making Patty roll her eyes while Abby and Erin both just smiled, well aware that Holtzmann was just as much a workaholic as they both were, tendencies which Patty tried to reign in the best she could – she enjoyed her new job too, especially since the move into the firehouse three months ago and the government-paid salary and health care which had come with said move, but she valued her private life, too, and was determined to make sure the other members of the team would actually have a private life to speak of.
“But not tonight”, Holtzmann added, to the historian’s not very well hidden relief, “tonight, I’m gonna hit my favourite bar. Holtzy deserves a drink!”
“Or two”, Patty nodded, smiling again; Abby was grinning too, but Erin’s smile, the historian noticed, looked a bit forced, and she wondered when the physicist would say something. Or if she ever would say something.
Patty knew people, and she was perceptive, something which had been quite useful for her job at the MTA; and this perceptiveness and ability to read people had made it quite clear to her quite quickly that Erin was much more receptive to Holtzmann’s flirting than the engineer herself probably had noticed, and that the awkward giggling had changed to a flattered laugh, but while Patty noticed these things, Holtzmann either didn’t or didn’t think that it was enough to prompt her into making a serious move.
Holtzy, baby, she thought to herself, nearly grimacing at how oblivious Holtzmann apparently was to the look of longing Erin shot her, she’s just waiting for you to ask her out. Say something!
Sadly, projecting her thoughts was not a skill she possessed, and so, Holtzmann did not ask Erin if the redhead wanted to join her; instead, she wished them a nice weekend, then headed out, unaware of the longing look Erin shot her as she left.
“So, uh”, the physicist said the moment Holtzmann was out the door, fingers starting to fidget as she started to feel nervous, “what sort of bar is Holtzmann talking about?”
“Oh a gay bar”, Abby replied, and while Erin had sort of expected this, it still made her heart and stomach clench up painfully, “she’s been going there for years, ever since she moved to NY. She took me along once, literally everyone knows her there.”
“Ah”, Erin let out, giving her best to sound neutral, but unable to keep a slight hint of dismay out of her voice, especially when she continued, “that… sounds nice. So, uh… she goes there often, yes? Does she… you know… take people… women? Home?”
“Oh my God”, Abby let out in response, sounding exasperated and even throwing her hands up, “Erin, really?! Just ask her out already, jeez!”
Erin blushed brightly in reply, but didn’t say anything; Patty just rolled her eyes at their antics, then wished them a nice weekend and warned them once more to not set foot in the firehouse during the weekend before she headed out, as well, the two women following a few minutes later, walking to the subway together.
“Seriously”, Abby said as just before they had to part ways there, “talk to Holtz, okay? I’ve told you, her flirting is not just something she does with everyone, she just does it with you.”
“I know”, Erin sighed, blushing again, another sigh following her words, “I’m just… you know. Not good at this. Which sucks, because she’s not gonna ask me out as long as she thinks I might tell her no. I feel like we’re stuck in a sort of holding pattern and don’t know how to get out of it.”
“I told you how to get out of it”, Abby gave back, shaking her head for emphasis, “ask her out! She’s not gonna say No, I guarantee you that.”
“If you’re wrong, I’ll make you pay for all the comfort food I’ll need to mend my broken heart”, Erin told her, earning a snort from her best friend; then, Abby nodded her agreement, and after this, they parted ways, Erin heading to her apartment where a relaxing weekend would await her – but not one without any work at all, no matter what Patty was saying – but already looking forward to Monday, enjoying her job more than she ever had her work at the university.
When Erin’s phone rang, she at first had no idea what was going on, the ringtone awfully loud in the quiet apartment; disoriented and confused, she sat up in the darkness, her phone vibrating noisily on the nightstand now, as well, the light of the display way too bright in the darkness of her bedroom, even with the small nightlight she had on her nightstand.
Groaning at the interruption of her sleep, Erin groped for her phone, needing a few moments until her bleary eyes could make out the contact name of the caller; and when she saw that it was Abby, she thought nothing of it at first, assuming that a call had come in and that Abby was waking her up to tell her they had to go to a late-night bust.
“I wish ghosts would stick to office hours”, she grumbled, then took the call, “hey Abby. Bust?”
“No”, Abby replied, and something about her tone told Erin at once that something much worse was going on, and suddenly, she wished that it was a bust, knowing she didn’t want to hear what her best friend would tell her next.
“Bellevue called”, Abby let her know, and her heart started to hammer in her chest so fast she was surprised it didn’t actually hurt, “the, um, the hospital, they…”
Her voice cracked, showing how upset she was, and Erin continued for her, feeling oddly numb now, not even fully registering how toneless her voice was as she spoke up.
“It’s Holtz, isn’t it”, she half stated, half asked, “you’re her emergency contact, it said so on the paperwork we did for the mayor…”
“Yes”, Abby brought out, sounding close to tears now, “they wouldn’t give me any details on the phone, just said she was taken there, we have to go there, meet there, maybe there was an accident…”
“I’ll meet you there”, Erin told her, still feeling numb, but oddly calm now, too, perhaps because neither of them knew how bad it really was, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad, she thought to herself, maybe Holtzmann was okay and it was just a big misunderstanding, or she wasn’t badly hurt at all, “I’ll call a cab right now. Do you want me to call one for you too? Or, wait, I’ll call one and we’ll stop at your place, we should get Patty, too, and maybe Kevin…”
“Not Kevin”, Abby decided, having calmed down a bit while Erin had been speaking, “it would take too long to explain this to him, but yes, the rest sounds good, I’ll call Patty, you call the cab, pick me up, then her.”
“Alright”, Erin agreed, glad that they had some sort of plan now, small as it was, “I’ll call a cab right away, I’ll see you in a few.”
Abby let out a vaguely agreeing noise, then let Erin know she’d call Patty next; and then, she hung up, and Erin called a cab before she threw on the first clothes she could find, not caring if they matched or were wrinkled, grabbing her phone and wallet afterwards before she rushed out of the apartment, the fear taking over again now as all she could do was wait for the cab and find out what had happened to the woman she had been crushing on for what felt like forever.