Station 19 – Out of Control

By: Gladys Luna

The team arrives from putting out a fire looking happy to have accomplished another successful mission. Maya (Danielle Savre) blows the whistle and announces that their response time is not what it’s supposed to be so they will be spending the next three hours doing drills. But Andy (Jaina Lee Ortiz) realizes that she is joking and calls her on it. Right after Maya says that since they cannot celebrate as they used to, they can go to her place and meet there for drinks. Ben (Jason George) gets a call from Miranda (Chandra Wilson) saying that her mother has died from COVID. Maya realizes something is wrong with Ben, so when he tells her what happened. She tells him to go and do what he has to do. The team meet at the locker room and they mock Jack (Grey Damon) who tells them that he will meet them later since he has promised Marcus (Ansel Sluyter-Obidos) to help him with his online classes. Sullivan (Boris Kodjoe) watches them and notices that Andy doesn’t even look at him. Ben arrives at his house where Roz (V. Vieux), Joey (Noah Alexander Gerry) and Tuck (BJ Tanner) are playing a video game. The boys are surprised but happy to see him there. He tells them that he was tested for COVID and is clean. He then asks them to turn off the TV in order to give them the news about Miranda’s mother.

Later that day Sullivan meets with Dr. Webber (James Pickens Jr.) and confesses that it is hard for him to stay apart from Andy, but since he is a rules follower he will do as Dr. Shepherd (Caterina Scorsone) suggested. Dr. Webber asks him if his wife is someone who drags him or induces him into drugs, but Sullivan says that on the contrary – she is his support. Dr. Webber tells him that then he shouldn’t be away from her. Maya asks Andy if she has invited Sullivan and shows her disagreement with them seeing each other while he is still in recovery. They get ready to host the gathering, but then realize that they have ran out of snacks. Andy offers herself to go get more. Vic (Barrett Doss) is at a restaurant picking up her order when an ambulance parks in front of her revealing Theo (Carlos Miranda) in it. They flirt for a little while he tells her that they should start meeting on purpose, but she says that at the moment she is not looking for a relationship and declines the invitation. Travis (Jay Hayden) shares with Maya and Miller (Okieriete Onaodowan) how he told his father that he knew he was gay. Miller says that he would like it to be so easy for him to speak with his parents as well and say what he thinks. In the meantime Maya tries to open a bottle of soda and when she does it explodes right in her face making the other two men laugh. Vic enters the place while Maya goes to change her clothes. Travis sees a stuffed bear in there and Miller says that his parents sent it as a gift for his daughter. However, he is mad that after they cut him off that now they want to make their way back into his life. While they are chatting they hear a woman scream outside and run to her. The woman who identifies herself as Joyce (Sophina Brown) is completely screaming that her daughter Jada (Makayla Lysiak) has been kidnapped by a man that lives in the house where she is at. She explains that her daughter had a sleepover with her friend Shanice (Yindra Zayas) and the next morning they weren’t there, so she tracked her daughter’s phone and it took her right there. She tries to break in the house, but Vic, Miller and Travis won’t allow her to do it. She claims that she asked for the police’s help, but they didn’t do anything about it. Miller promises that he will help her, but she needs to trust him first.

Andy is dancing to a Salsa song while she picks the snacks she needs from the station. Sullivan enters the place and sees her. He goes near her and takes one earphone and dances along with her. He confesses that he had a meeting with his sponsor and he told him a lot of interesting things. Then, he tries to kiss her, but she says that they are supposed to be separated. He says they are also married and finally kisses her.

Joyce calls Shanice’s mom Sharon (Dionne Audain) to tell her what happened with their daughters. Miller looks concerned and frustrated for not being able to do more for the woman. He says the it worries him that something like that may happen to his daughter. He tells Vic that “it takes a village to raise a kid” and the woman says that if that is true then he would need to let more people join that village if he wants to support his daughter. He gets desperate and tries to break into the house, but Vic stops him. Meanwhile, Jack is with Inara (Colleen Foy) doing the dishes. They laugh and seem to be happy together. He tells her that he was told that Marsha (Jayne Taini) is getting better. The woman tells him that he doesn’t have to continue sleeping on the couch given that he works long hours and he needs a good night sleep. He says that he won’t feel comfortable sleeping in Marsha’s bed and she offers him to take her bed instead or sleep with her. They share a long stare before Inara gathers her courage and kisses him. Jack kisses her right back. Ben is talking to Tuck about what happened to his grandma, but the young man seems to be upset about the whole situation and also because Miranda was not there to tell him. Unfortunately, he takes his anger on Ben saying that he is not even his father – something that truly hurts him.

Miller, Travis, Joyce and Vic go knock at the allegedly kidnapper’s door to try to figure out if the girls are there. A man named Bob (Michael Patrick McGill) comes out looking mad for the mess the woman has caused and for bothering him. Joyce wants to get in, but he says that if they don’t leave he will call the police. Ben talks to Roz about what Tuck said to him and she says that he shouldn’t take it personally since he did the same when he was younger and their mother died. It seems like the doctor has forgotten how he told his father that his mother was the only one who loved him and, even though that hurt his father, he just cooked spaghetti for him that day since he knew that it was pain speaking for him. Ben decides to do the same for Tuck. Andy and Sullivan have sex in his old office and then he confesses to her that his sponsor said that if she was not a reason for him doing drugs or alcohol then they should be together. Surprisingly, Jack and Inara have decided to go in the same direction as Andy and Sullivan. Inara encourages Jack to go and meet with his friends and he asks her to go with him, but she refuses. He seems to want to discuss what happened between them, but she wants to enjoy it a little bit longer before having to talk about it. Maya comes out from her bedroom and sees that no one is there. She then hears screams outside and goes to meet with the others. Jack also arrives there and Miller explains to them what it seems to be happening. Maya says that is complicated and to just go into action since they are off duty.

Vic and Miller tell Jack how it is more difficult for them to find justice and to be heard when something happens to them. They also speak about how they have grown in fear that they get hurt something that seems to take him by surprise. Now, Shanice’s mom Sharon has joined them and the woman blames Joyce for not having taken good care of the girls. The police arrive and Officer Schneider (Scott William Winters) and Officer Wicklund (Chris Coy) come out of the car. Maya believes they are there to attend to her call, but they say that they are there because the owner of the house called them to say there were people outside his place making a riot. Officer Schneider doesn’t seem to believe what is happening there and shows a hint of arrogance towards Joyce and the team of firefighters. In an attempt to make their way into the house Miller claims that he smells gas. Jack and Maya play along and ask the officers to secure the area. Then, an explosion occurs and smoke comes out of the basement of the house. Andy and Sullivan arrive at the place and Maya gets them up to speed about the situation. Bob comes out of the house coughing while Miller and Sullivan go in without any protection but their jackets. Ben is cooking when Joey joins him so he makes a plate for him. They joke a little bit and talk about what Tuck might be feeling. Right that moment the other guy walks in and asks if he can get some spaghetti too and then he apologizes to Ben for what he said earlier and, in a minute, it’s all forgiven.

Miller and Sullivan get to the basement of the house where they can hear the girls screaming for help. When they finally reach them they have fainted, so Miller and Sullivan carry one girl each and take them out of the house. Ben, Tuck and Joey discuss about how people are ignorant and don’t take care of each other. The doctor says that he has seen people going through their worst days, but can recognize that hope is what keeps them moving. In the meantime, the girls’ mothers cry when they see that they are unconscious, but slowly they begin to wake up. Another ambulance arrives and Maya welcomes them. The officers arrest Bob while one of the girls explain that they were taking a lot of pictures and posting them to Instagram when a girl messaged them saying she was an influencer and asking them to meet with her to tell them how to make money with their pictures. They arrived at the place they agreed and then Bob took them into a van and locked them in his basement and never spoke to them again. Officer Wicklund approaches Jada to ask her a few personal questions, but Maya gets mad for the way he does it and asks him to give the girl some space. Officer Schneider claims that he believes the girls are lying, so Joyce goes over him and he arrests her for attacking him. Miller gets upset and tries to punch an officer, but is taken down by someone else. Andy attempts to help, but is thrown to the floor – something that makes Sullivan upset. Everyone is out of control. Although Maya tries to keep them at bay, it’s just out of her hands now. The officers call for back up and when the other officers arrive they end up arresting Miller, Sullivan and Joyce while Maya tells them they are her team but can’t do nothing about it. They are taken away before Vic, Travis, Jack, Andy and Maya’s eyes.