She watched as the orange arms breached her bedroom window. The reality of her situation hadn't registered in her numb mind and as a dark smoke plume gathered up and drifted into the night sky, she wondered if the wood of her bedframe smelled nice while it was consumed by the fire.
Actually, it wouldn't be just her bedframe. As she thought about it, she realized it would also be her mattress and her dresser and her phone charger and her dresses and silk blouses and the forty or so pairs of shoes she had stuffed in her closet.
It was her whole life burning down.
A small drip of reality built in the corner of her eye. She sniffled and tried to keep it back but it slid down her cheek. A moment later she wiped at it, the saltiness making it feel crusty on her skin.
She suddenly felt like she was being watched.
Her house was burning down so the whole neighborhood was outside pointing at her, but she felt an odd shiver down her spine as she felt an intent behind their gaze that called to her sixth sense.
She searched the crowd and made eye contact with a firefighter. He had just removed his head gear and she noticed his dark, damp hair and the sweat dripping down his face to the small cleft in his chin.
As he walked past, she stopped him, "Thank you for trying to save my house."
He paused, "This is your house?"
Kelly nodded and was suddenly aware she was standing in the middle of her street in her fuzzy robe and pink slippers.
"You should follow me. We'll get you a blanket and take your information for the report."
She swallowed. A report? Of course. She would need to file insurance paperwork and...
All her insurance documents had been in her house.
She nibbled on her bottom lip and she barely noticed as a second tear slid down her cheek.
Amber, dressed for a night out in a tight black dress and pink pumps, giggled and deposited a second round of lemonade and vodka on their table. The first round had loosened them up enough that Kelly could feel the stress draining from her body. Ever since the fire, she had felt like a tightly wound ball of rubber bands but now the alcohol made her feel as if someone had pulled the ball apart, freeing the tension.
The second drink was to get the night started.
Halfway through their drinks, a waitress brought over two more. The two women looked at each other, confused.
Amber said, "Um, we didn't order these."
The waitress smiled and bobbed her head, her shiny brown hair swishing in her ponytail. "I know. The gentleman over at the bar bought this round for you."
The ladies looked over as a tall man in tight blue jeans gave a brief wave and offered a soft smile.
Kelly and Amber waved back and Kelly said, "He looks really familiar."
Amber giggled. "Does he? That's good because he also looks really delicious."
The man walked over and smiled at Kelly. "Hi."
"Um, hi."
The table sat in awkward silence for a moment.
The man cleared his throat then said, "I guess it was a pretty crazy night so you might not remember me, but I'm Mike. I was the firefighter that brought you over to give a report that night."
"Oh? ... Oh! I do remember you! I ..." Kelly cleared her throat and a flush crept into her cheeks, "I am so sorry about that night. I was such a mess. I can't believe you even recognized me now that I'm not sobbing my eyes out."
He laughed then said, "You kept saying you had no more clothes so I imagined you going to work in those pink fuzzy slippers for a while." He slid into a seat next to her and pointed down at her shoes under the table. "I'm glad you found some regular shoes even though these are at least as sexy as the fuzzy slippers."
Kelly glanced down at her black heels as Amber leaned over the table, purposefully pushing her cleavage together, and clarified, "So, you are a firefighter?"
His attention was off in the distance as a group behind them got up to leave. Mike smiled at the ladies and excused himself.
Amber scooted her stool closer to Kelly and scoffed while adjusting her breasts, "He didn't even notice these babies. What is wrong with him?"
Kelly shrugged, "Maybe he wasn't here to flirt with us. Maybe he was just genuinely interested in seeing that I was okay after the fire."
Amber rolled her eyes and mocked what he said earlier, " '...these are at least as sexy as the fuzzy slippers.' Kelly, honey, he practically winked when he said that! He so wants you. And I think that after all the crazy you've been through during the past few weeks, you should totally hit that."
Amber finished her drink and made annoying sounds with her straw. Mike returned to his seat next to Kelly and Amber shot over a pointed look. She suddenly jumped up from the table and announced, "I'm all out of my drink. Kelly, I'm going to go grab another, do you want another?"
Kelly shook her head. She had only just started her free drink.
Mike's leg rested against hers under the table as he asked her how she was doing after the fire.
Amber returned to the table, distracted. She waited while Mike finished his comment to Kelly.
"So you've been staying with your parents? That's awful, Kelly, I'm so sorry. Doesn't your insurance pay for a temporary hotel stay?"
Amber slammed her drink down on the table and checked her phone. She glanced at Kelly while Kelly's phone buzzed.
Kelly held up her finger to Mike while she furrowed her brows and pulled up a text:
Get all over your sexy firefighter! I'm heading out.
Amber reached to give her friend a small hug and said, "Bye, Babe! I'll catch up with you later!"
She winked at Mike and walked out of the bar with a rugged Adonis.
Mike mockingly held his hand up to his chest and asked, "She is leaving you here alone with me?"
Kelly nodded and said, "I guess so. I actually feel weird staying here now without her. Do you want to head somewhere else?"
Mike sat with his hand on his chin then offered, "I suppose the fire station is empty right now. I could give you a tour and let you sit in one of the fire trucks."
Kelly wasn't sure. Mike had come up with that offer pretty fast and she wondered how many other women he had convinced to go to the fire station with him. Mike seemed nice and she was undeniably attracted to him, but she wasn't sure she wanted to do anything as risky as wandering a fire station with him late at night. Should she go?
They had toured the kitchen and the main area. Now he was being true to his word and she was climbing up into the driver's seat of a bright red fire truck. He stood next to her on the metal step and pointed things out to her.
"This is how you would turn it on," he reached over her, his hand almost brushing against her breast, "and this switch..."
They heard voices and his eyes widened. "Aw, shit. Can I ask you to crawl in the back so no one sees us? If they see you, I'll get endless amounts of teasing and they'll assume you're my girlfriend."
Kelly scrambled out of the seat and into the back, accidentally showing off her black thong under her dress, while Mike hopped in after her and closed the door. He crouched next to her, his arm brushing hers and his face only a few inches away while he peered out the window.
She whispered into his ear, "They must not have been coming this way."
He turned his head back, his face barely centimeters away and Kelly caught herself gazing into his eyes as he whispered, "It sounds like it."
Forgetting what they had been talking about, she tilted her face closer to his and asked, "It sounds like what?"