𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 || BWWM

"Someone help them. They're dying!" 

A civilian yelled from across the street, pointing toward the burning building.

Flames burst through the windows as smoke rolled into the sky. Firefighters came stumbling out of the entrance, coughing into their masks while another firefighter dragged a hose away from the doorway.

"Everyone out!" Captain Harris shouted, waving them toward the trucks.

I stayed behind the engine with my helmet tucked beneath my arm, my hands clasped together.

"God, please," I whispered, bowing my head. "Get them out."

"Where the hell is Desmond?" Harris yelled.

My head lifted at the sound of my name.

"Here, sir." I stepped from behind the truck and walked toward him.

Harris pointed at me. "You think this is the time to hide?"

"No, sir." I reached for my helmet.

"Then get your ass over here." He snatched his own helmet from the truck and shoved it onto his head.

"Yes, sir." I pulled mine on and secured the strap beneath my chin.

"Grab the hose!" Harris ordered, pointing toward the equipment.

I grabbed the hose with both hands while two other firefighters moved beside me.

"Everybody ready?" Harris shouted.

"Ready!" someone yelled back.

Harris pointed toward the entrance. "Get in there. Find anyone still inside and bring them out."

I adjusted my grip on the hose.

"Yes, sir."

"Move!"

We charged toward the building as flames climbed across the ceiling above us.

We pushed through the entrance with the hose between us, heat pressing against every inch of my gear.

"Check every room!" Harris shouted behind us.

I moved down the hallway and kicked open the first door.

A little boy was curled beneath a desk, coughing into his sleeve.

"I got one!" I shouted, dropping beside him.

"Come here, kid." I grabbed him under the arms and pulled him toward the exit.

One of the other firefighters took him from me.

"Get him outside!"

I turned back toward the hallway and pushed farther in.

"Over here!" Dalton yelled from the next room.

I followed his voice and found a family huddled together near the wall.

"Everyone up." I waved them toward the doorway. "We're getting you out."

The mother grabbed her daughter while the father carried their youngest.

"Move!" Dalton urged, guiding them toward the exit.

I followed behind them, scanning the rooms as we moved.

Once the last family member disappeared through the entrance, I stopped.

"That everybody?"

"Looks like it," Dalton answered.

I started toward the exit.

A faint cough came from deeper inside.

My feet stopped.

"You hear that?" I asked.

Dalton turned toward me. "Hear what?"

Another cough slipped through the smoke.

"There." I pointed down the hallway. "Take them outside."

Dalton stared at me. "Desmond, you're not seriously going back in."

"Take them outside."

"Are you crazy?"

I grabbed his shoulder and shoved him toward the entrance.

"Go."

Dalton stumbled back a step.

"Des-"

"Go!"

He turned and ran after the survivors.

I pushed deeper into the building, following the sound of the cough.

A burning beam crashed down in front of me.

I threw myself backward as flames spilled across the floor.

"Jesus Christ."

I stared at the beam blocking the hallway, then touched the front of my helmet.

"Thank you, God."

The smoke thickened around me as I stepped over the fallen beam.

Another cough came from ahead. "I'm coming."

I followed the sound into the next room and stopped.

A Black woman lay on the floor beneath the smoke, barely conscious.

"Hey."

I dropped beside her and reached for her shoulder.

"Can you hear me?"

Her eyes opened slightly.

"Firefighter," I said, pulling my mask closer over my face. "I'm getting you out."

I hooked one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back, lifting her from the floor. Her head fell against my shoulder as I adjusted my grip.

"I've got you," I said, turning toward the hallway. "Stay with me."

Her fingers moved against my jacket, but she couldn't answer. Flames crawled across the ceiling as I carried her through the smoke, stepping over the beam that had crashed down earlier.

"Come on," I muttered, keeping her head against my shoulder as I pushed toward the entrance.

"Desmond!" Dalton shouted from outside.

I stepped through the doorway with her still in my arms, and the entire crew turned toward me. Dalton's eyes widened when he saw the woman.

"Holy shit. There was someone else?"

I carried her toward the paramedics as one of them rushed over with a stretcher. "Found her inside," I said, lowering her onto it while the paramedic immediately started checking her.

Harris walked over, staring at the woman. "We thought everyone was out."

"So did I." I stepped back as the paramedic began working on her.

Dalton looked between me and the woman. "You went back in there for her?"

I pulled my gloves off and tossed them onto the truck. "I heard her coughing."

"You could've gotten yourself killed."

I looked back at the burning building as another window exploded. "Didn't."

Dalton shook his head, still watching the paramedics work on her. "You're fucking crazy."

"Get back to work." I grabbed a fresh pair of gloves from the truck and turned toward the building.

I grabbed the hose again and moved toward the building with Will and Hank. Water blasted through the broken windows as we worked our way across the front, knocking down the flames still crawling along the upper floor.

"Keep it on the left side!" Harris shouted.

I shifted the nozzle toward the left and held it there while Will worked beside me.

"You did good in there," Will said, keeping his eyes on the building.

"Yeah." I adjusted my grip on the hose. "Had to."

Hank glanced over at me while directing the water toward another window. "Still would've gone back."

I smirked at him. "Probably."

He shook his head and turned back toward the building. "You're an idiot."

"Get used to it."

The three of us kept working as the flames slowly disappeared behind the smoke. Twenty minutes later, the last visible fire was gone, leaving nothing but blackened windows and water running down the side of the building.

Harris lowered his hand. "That's it. Fire's out."

I shut off the hose and stepped back, rolling my shoulders as Will and Hank started gathering the equipment.

"Good work," Will said, clapping my shoulder.

I looked at him. "You too."

Hank picked up the hose beside us. "Now I want food."

"You always want fucking food, man."

"Because I'm always hungry."

Will laughed as we started packing everything away. Harris walked over while I was helping Will coil the hose back onto the truck.

"Desmond."

I glanced over my shoulder. "Yeah?"

"Come with me."

I handed the hose to Will and followed Harris a few steps away from the others.

"You went back inside alone."

"I heard someone."

"You had no confirmation anyone was still in there."

"I heard someone coughing." I folded my arms. "Was I supposed to ignore it?"

Harris stared at me. "You were supposed to wait for backup."

"There wasn't time."

"There is always time to call for another firefighter."

I shook my head. "She would've been dead."

Harris stepped closer. "And you could've been dead with her."

"I wasn't."

"That isn't the point." He pointed toward the building. "You don't get to decide that your life is worth less than the person you're rescuing."

I looked back at the crew as Hank loaded equipment onto the truck.

"I'm not saying that."

"You acted like it."

I rubbed my forehead and looked away. "She's alive."

"Because you got her out." Harris lowered his voice. "You did good work today. But don't make me have this conversation with you again."

I looked back at him. "Won't happen."

"Good." He nodded toward the truck. "Get your gear packed."

I turned away and walked back to the others.

Will glanced at me. "Everything good?"

"Captain gave me a lecture."

Hank looked over while lifting the last piece of equipment. "You deserved it."

I pointed at him. "Nobody asked you."

He laughed and climbed into the truck.

I looked toward the ambulance before climbing into the truck. The woman I'd pulled out was still on the stretcher while a paramedic checked her vitals.

"Is she going to be okay?" I asked, walking over.

The paramedic glanced at me while adjusting the oxygen mask over her face. "She's breathing on her own. We're taking her to the hospital to get checked out."

I nodded and looked at the woman again. Her eyes were closed, her face covered in soot, her hair spread across the pillow.

"Family?"

"We haven't found anyone with her."

I glanced back at the building, then at her.

"She's alone?"

"Looks that way."

I rubbed the back of my neck and stepped away from the stretcher. "All right."

The paramedic pushed the stretcher toward the ambulance while another opened the doors.

"Take care of her," I said.

"We will."

I watched them load her inside before turning back toward the fire truck. Harris was already climbing into the driver's seat.

"Desmond!" he called.

I walked over and climbed inside. "Coming."

As the doors shut behind me, I looked through the window one last time and watched the ambulance pull away.

We pulled back into the station and climbed out of the truck, leaving the equipment behind as we headed for the locker room.

I grabbed my clothes and headed into the showers while Dalton and the others changed nearby. A few minutes later, I stepped back into the locker room with a towel wrapped around my waist and ran a hand through my wet hair.

Dalton walked past and slapped my ass.

I spun around and stared at him. "Each day I wonder when you'll come out the closet."

Dalton rolled his eyes and kept walking. "Shut up, Desmond."

Will laughed from across the room while pulling his shirt over his head. "You two are fucking ridiculous."

I grabbed my boxers from my locker and started getting dressed.

Will was talking to another firefighter beside him about women they'd seen around the neighborhood.

"Yeah, man, I would totally hit that," Will said, shaking his head. "She foineee."

I stopped pulling my shirt down and looked at him.

Will caught my reaction and started laughing. "What?"

"You have a wife."

The other guys chuckled.

Will shrugged. "I'm married, not blind."

I shook my head and reached for my pants while the laughter continued around me.

"Idiots," I muttered, pulling them on.

Jason shut his locker and glanced over at me. "What are you doing after work, Desmond?"

I pulled my jacket over my shirt and frowned at him. Why was everyone talking to me today?

Will was still running his mouth, Dalton was laughing about something, and Jason had decided he needed an answer from me too. Voices overlapped around the locker room while lockers slammed and shoes scraped against the floor.

I shrugged. "Nothing."

Jason nodded. "Fair enough."

I grabbed my keys from the top of my locker and shoved them into my pocket. "I'm heading out."

"Later," Will called.

"See you tomorrow," Jason added.

I lifted a hand without turning around and walked through the station.

The moment I stepped outside, the noise behind me faded. I pulled my jacket closed and headed toward my car.

Home could wait.

I needed noodles.

The bell above the door chimed when I walked inside, and Mr. Liu looked up from behind the counter.

"Good evening, Desmond."

"Evening, Mr. Liu." I gave him a nod and headed toward the aisle.

I'd been coming to his store since I was eighteen or nineteen. He'd watched me grow from a kid who barely said two words to a man who still came in whenever I wanted noodles.

"Just grabbing noodles," I called over my shoulder.

"Always noodles," Mr. Liu said with a chuckle.

I grabbed the package I wanted and walked back to the counter, placing it down while he rang it up.

"That will be..." He told me the price, and I handed him the money.

Mr. Liu took it and placed the noodles into a small bag. "So, Desmond. You have a special lady yet?"

I bit down on my lower lip, playing with it as a grin spread across my face.

"Nope. Got no desire yet."

Mr. Liu handed me the bag and shook his head. "That's a shame."

"Maybe one day."

"Maybe."

I took the bag from him. "Have a good night, Mr. Liu."

"You too, Desmond."

I headed for the door, the bell chiming behind me as I stepped outside.

I tossed the bag of noodles onto the passenger seat and started the car. As I drove, my mind kept returning to the fire.

I rarely went off protocol. Today had been different. That cough had been faint, but I needed to know where it was coming from. Walking away without checking would've stayed on my mind.

Then I thought about her.

Was she all right?

My fingers shifted against the steering wheel as another thought came to me.

What color were her eyes?

I'd never seen them. Her eyes had been closed the entire time I was with her.

I shook my head. "No."

Work stayed at work. I'd promised myself that.

I kept my attention on the road and pushed the thought aside, refusing to drag the day's events into my personal life.

Finally, I pulled into my driveway, grabbed the bag from the passenger seat, and walked to the front door. After unlocking it, I stepped inside and set the noodles on the kitchen counter.

"I'm home," I said to no one. I stopped near the kitchen and looked around my empty apartment. "Yeesh. Can't it be more depressing?"

I started whistling as I walked toward the kitchen, and a few seconds later, Daisy appeared around the corner.

"There you are." I smiled as she followed me toward the counter.

I set the bag of noodles down, and Daisy immediately hopped onto the counter.

I grabbed the spray bottle. "Aht, aht. What did I say about that?"

Daisy stared at me.

"You know better." I pointed the bottle toward her as she hopped back down. "Get down."

She jumped onto the floor, and I put the bottle away before picking her up.

"You don't listen good, but you're cute." I rubbed her back while she settled against my chest. "So imma let it slide."

I carried her over to the floor and set her down.

Daisy walked away without giving me another glance.

I watched her go before looking back at the bag on the counter.

"Time to eat."

.