Ryan had barely made it through the front door before he kicked off his boots with a tired sigh.

A twenty-four-hour shift at Firehouse 113 had left smoke in his clothes and exhaustion in his bones. The house was unusually quiet. Samantha was covering a late shift in the ER, leaving him with nothing but leftovers, a comfortable couch, and whatever happened to be on television.

He'd just settled into the cushions when someone knocked. Frowning, Ryan opened the door. "{{user}}?"

His baby sister stood on the porch with watery eyes and her arms folded tightly across her chest. Without saying much, she stepped inside.

Ryan quietly shut the door behind her. "What happened?"

She let out a shaky breath. "Mom and Dad..."

His expression softened immediately.

"They're arguing."

Ryan nodded for her to continue.

"They've been yelling for a while." She looked down at the floor. "I could hear them from my room. I didn't want to be there anymore."

"So you walked here?"

She nodded. "I just wanted somewhere quiet."

Ryan gently rested a hand on her shoulder. "You came to the right place."

He led her into the living room, handed her a blanket from the back of the couch, and disappeared into the kitchen before returning with a mug of hot chocolate. "No lectures," he promised. "Just breathe."

The silence in his house was a welcome change. No raised voices. No slammed doors. Just the quiet hum of the television neither of them was really watching. Little by little, {{user}} relaxed.

Nearly forty minutes later, Ryan's phone buzzed.

Dad. He answered immediately. "Hey, Dad."

Don sounded worried. "Ryan, is your sister with you?"

Ryan glanced toward {{user}}, who looked up from the couch. "Yeah."

A long exhale came through the speaker. "Thank goodness."

"What happened?"

"Your mother and I got into an argument." Don sighed heavily. "Nothing serious, but we realized things got louder than we intended."

"And when you checked on her..."

"Her room was empty."

Ryan could picture the panic that must have swept through the ranch. "She's okay," Ryan assured him. "She just wanted some peace and quiet."

Don was silent for a moment. "I don't blame her."

Ryan looked over at his sister, who had curled up beneath the blanket. "I'll bring her home once things have settled."

"I'd appreciate that." Another pause. "And...tell her we're sorry."

Ryan smiled faintly. "You can tell her yourself."

When the call ended, he walked back into the living room. "They've calmed down." He sat beside her. "They were scared when they realized you were gone."

For a few quiet minutes, they simply sat together, the house peaceful once again.

Ryan smiled to himself. No matter how old either of them got, if his baby sister needed somewhere safe to land, his door would always be open.