Quarter Mile

Sundown

CW// mention of death

"Pick up, pick up, pick up," Parker muttered into his phone. The house had been evacuated and the firefighters had been called, but Parker hadn't seen Dakota outside anywhere. It had started raining hard, and Parker's hair and clothes were soaked through.

"Hello?"

"Beck! Thank God," he shouted, waving Eli and Harvey over. "Is Koda with you?"

"What? No, why would he be with me?" Parker could hear his sadness through the phone.

"Fuck," Parker put his head in his hand. "Beck, I need help."

"What?" Beck repeated, growing worried. "What happened?"

Parker's voice broke as he said his next words. "Beck, the house is on fire. I can't find Koda."

"Shit," Beck breathed, immediately sitting up and racing to the door. "I'm on my way." He jumped in his car and sped down the street, knowing he had to get there as soon as possible. If Dakota was still inside, who knows how long he would have. It was two minutes later when he realised it was raining.

His heart threatened to rip out of his ribcage at the mere thought of the last time he had driven in the rain, but he pushed it aside. He had to get to Dakota.

He wasn't speeding; he'd learnt his lesson, but he was drunk and that scared him. But he would do anything if it meant keeping Dakota safe. The streetlights blurred as his eyes started leaking salty tears.

"FUCK," he screamed repeatedly, dragging out the word so much that his voice started to crack and grow hoarse.

His mind flooded with a thousand memories all at once. Memories of his sister, laughing and singing moments before the crash. And memories of his sister after the crash, lying crumpled on the dash of his car, but still conscious enough to give Beck one last smile before her lights went out on the way to the hospital. Beck believed she'd held on for him. He believed she had held on to that tiny slither of life until she was alone in the ambulance. He'd seen it in movies before; watched the life drain from someone's eyes after their loved one left the room.

There were memories of his and Dakota's adventures; the mountain, the lake, that time they went to the community fair and ate too much candy floss, their visit to the dog shelter so that Dakota could pat all of the dogs and tell them all how precious they were. So many memories he didn't want to let go of, despite what had happened at the dance.

As he turned onto the street Macey lived on, his eyes widened in horror. Thick, black smoke was billowing up into the night air and the sky was alight with a dancing flame, almost mocking him from afar. People swarmed the streets, some running in fear of the police, some searching for their friends and breathing a sigh of relief when they found them.

Beck jumped out of his car and raced up to the line of firefighters blocking off the entrance to the house.

"Beck!" He looked to his left and saw Parker, Eli and Harvey sprinting towards him.

"Where is he?" He cried. "Have you found him?" Parker shook his head.

"I saw that dick, Henry, come out of the bathroom wiping his mouth and Dakota was standing behind him, looking really distraught. I chased after Henry and beat him up but I left Dakota there." Harvey said. His next words haunted Beck. "I think he's still in there."

Beck turned from his friends and back towards the firefighters. They were trying their hardest to stop people from getting too close. Beck tapped the shoulder of one of the men closest to him.