Fallen Angel

Chapter 4: Feeling the Heat

Namine...

Today was somehow special for me. It made me realize something. Something I can't live without. I fixed my hair for the hundredth time, trying to get it to look perfect. AHA! I ran to the bathroom to get a yellow butterfly barrette. I fixed my whitish-blonde hair for the last time, then put the clip in. Perfect! I straightened my yellow sundress and looked at myself one more time on the mirror. I made sure my ugly scar wasn't visible on the back of my neck, which it wasn't. I grabbed my purse and headed out the door. Boy, was Roxas gonna be surprised when he saw me!

Roxas...

I licked my hand and ran it through my hair again. Not a single spike changed. "Damn Hair..." How should I go about this? If I dressed up too fancy, Namine would know something was up. But if I underdressed... I decided to go with a vibrant casual look. Was I obsessing over this too much? We were already so comfortable with each other. We practically lived together, like brother and sister. We fell asleep on the same couch more often than not. So why was this SO difficult? I put on a spray of cologne as the doorbell rang. This is as good as it gets. I walked to the door. Something was different between us. I could just feel it. 

I opened the door to see something I'd never thought I see. Well, it was Namine, but it wasn't her at all. My eyes fell where they had never fallen before... her body! It was covered in a beautiful yellow dress that was both simple and elegant. It wasn't too much fanciness, but it was just right. She had her hair pulled out of her face with a matching pin. She giggled as I checked her out. 'Man, I SO didn't dress up enough!' was what I wanted to say, but all that came out was, "Uh... come on in, Namine." She came in and waited for me to close the door. I couldn't. I was still in shock. I turned around to look at her again. She glowed in the movie-theater-style lighting. Was this my Namine? 

"Well, are you gonna close the door, or would you prefer to keep drooling all night?" She giggled as I shut the door. She plopped down on the couch. Suddenly I realized that under all the fancy dress up, she was still the same Namine that I grew up with, the Namine that I... 

"What's for supper?" She interrupted my thoughts. "Are we ordering pizza tonight?" 

I smiled, feeling slightly ridiculous. After all, we were the same people. So why did I try to impress her by cooking? She knows I can't cook! "Actually, I made dinner for us tonight." I went into the kitchen. "It should be just about done." DING! The timer went off. I pulled out the lasagna and set it on the table. "Dinner is served! Courtesy of Chef Stouffer." She giggled as I said the name of the frozen foods company. 

"Wow Roxas, I'm impressed!" I couldn't help but blush when I heard the exact words I wanted to hear, "It actually looks good!" 

"Why do you sound surprised? Do you doubt my cooking skills? I can cook when I want to!" We both laughed at the memories of many kitchen fires, all caused by yours truly. "Let's eat!" We both sat down. I inhaled the scent of cheese and noodles. I picked up a big knife and sliced into it. Sort of. I grunted with the force of cutting into noodles that were rock hard. I managed to slice all the way down, but the knife got stuck. Namine giggled. 

"Pizza?" She offered. 

"Pizza." I agreed. 

Forty-six minutes and five slices of pepperoni pizzas later, we were stuffed, looking for a movie to rent on demand. "Okay, "I said, "One sappy love story coming right up. I flicked through the channels, looking for a movie that fit the category. "Oh here's one." I selected the movie, and looked up the summary. It was about a girl whose face got burnt in a fire, and was looking for true love. Every man turned her down because of her appearance until she met her Prince Charming. I hit 'preview'. The screen flicked to life. It showed imaged after image of blazing fires and people getting burned alive. Ow! My head started to hurt as painful memories flared back to life. 

/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\V/\

I remembered once again the tragic day. It had started out as hanging on the beach with my old friend. There were four of us- me, two guys, and a girl. We came back from the beach happy, and I was selling a sand dollar to a vendor on the streets. A man I hardly knew ran up to me. He lived on my street; he was a neighbor that I never talked to. 

"Mr. Jenks?" I asked when he ran up to me. I hadn't seen him in years! 

"Son," he said, trying to be friendly, "Come with me! Hurry!" He grabbed my arm and yanked me. My friends followed closely behind us. He led me to our street. He was the first house on the left, and I was the last one at the center of the cul-de-sac. My house was the one that was up in flames.  

The man removed his cap. "I'm sorry, sonny." 

I couldn't say anything except no. I repeated it over and over again, not believing what my eyes were showing me. I ran to the house. Three firemen restrained me, or they tried to at least. I slithered between their arms. no one could stop me as I kicked down the half burned door and ran into a room filled with smoke, ash, and flames. Brilliant, burning, intense, fiery flames licked at my skin, threatening to eat me alive. I ran through them, ran upstairs to find my parents lying on the floor. Not moving. I ran to them. 

"Mom! Dad!" I used what was left of my strength trying to shake them awake. They didn't wake up. I cried and screamed and shook them until I became unconscious. I felt the fiery inferno creeping closer, like a cat ready to lunge at any moment. I heard the normally silent building moan and creak under the pressure of a million flames. I felt the firefighter before I heard him. He grabbed me, then spoke to another. 

"The boy's unconscious, but breathing. The parents are long gone. They inhaled too much smoke. Let's get the hell 'outta here before the whole friggin' building collapses!" He ran down the stairs and through the doors just in time. The building shuddered, then split in half. It crumbled upon itself. I struggled against the chief's strong grasp, but it was no use. My one and only home was gone, along with my parents. I never saw them again.  

The firemen took me to their station. They told me I was going to a foster home. My friends all came to say goodbye. I was too sad to be embarrassed about my tear-stricken face. They cried with me. I never saw them again either. When they left, so did I. I snuck out the back door, and ran to my house. I recovered what Items I could, found some unharmed munny, and ran straight for the train station. I took the first train out, a train that happened to head to Destiny Islands. I remember riding on the train, and wondering why the munny had survived, but my parents hadn't.