With Love, Silvia. [✔️]

Chapter 11 Burning.

After my group therapy session, I was feeling ready to get back to school. I had gotten some of the girls' phone numbers and we set up a group text. Turns out that Marilyn goes to my school too, but she's a junior not a freshman. I texted the girls until Erica set dinner on the table; tonight's meal was hamburgers. I ate up and went upstairs with Emma to finish some of our homework.

I got up to our room and took my heavy school binder out of my backpack. Emma sat in her window seat doing her math work, so I sat at her desk and began my report on William Shakespeare since I didn't see the video Miss Kathy showed, I had a feeling that I would struggle with the topic. Luckily I got a book about him from the library after my therapy meeting. I opened the book to page 5 and read about his early life. I was bored out of my mind, but eventually I put the last word on my paper and sighed a sigh of relief as I closed my binder. Emma was still hard at work with her math.

"Need any help?" I ask crossing over to her.

"Yea, I always have Mom help me, but she wasn't too good at math either and I'm getting a C in that class at the moment." Emma said looking at me pleading me to help her.

"I can help, let's see, were working with one step equations..." I said and began to help her, and soon enough Emma was solving the problems correctly all on her own. She smiled a happy little grin and went back downstairs to help get Owen and Emily ready for bed. I admired her for helping around the house so much. I bet Erica did too.

I sat on my mattress, (I STILL hadn't gotten a real bed yet!) and took out my journal. I began to write.

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November 28, 2015

Crazy things have been happening lately. It all started on Monday when Iris's friend Anika left a "nice" little note for me on my locker, telling me to stay away from her friends at all costs. And she continued to bully me all day long. Finally I broke in Miss Kathy's class. It was so embarrassing! The whole English class watched me wail as our teacher escorted me to the nurse. Then when I got home, Erica sent me to a support group in the library! However, it really helped me! That's all for right now, but I'll write more.

p.s. Iris is right I do need a catch phrase!

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When 10 o'clock came around I was already asleep. I woke up to the smell of smoke downstairs. Emma was still slumbering in her bed, so It must have been pretty early. I picked my head up as I saw hazy gray air wafting through the doorway. Something wasn't right. I tiptoed to the loft area upstairs and peered down below, the smoke was so thick, I couldn't see. I jumped when the sharp sound of a fire alarm went off. It was the automated kind that had the lady calmly say, fire fire.

I was soon joined by Owen who had a very worried expression on his face. He began to cry. I picked him up in my arms and ran to Erica's room. She was already awake when I entered.

"Um, I think we may have a problem here!" I said as Owen sobbed. Erica nodded and ran to everyone's room s making sure they were ok. Everyone was fine, until we discovered that Rodger was missing. Everyone was panicking, running around looking for him.

Emma started downstairs and screamed loud and shrill as she barreled up the stairs. There was a fire alright, and it was burning the wooden stairs, trapping us.

"We need to call 911!" Erica shouted as she ran to her room to find a phone. She came out with her cell phone and quickly dialed the number. We all waited in silence as the fire alarm blared.

BEEP BEEP

Fire Fire

BEEP BEEP

It was the end for us, I didn't want to die, not this way. The flames grew as they scorched the stairs and everything on the wall beside it. Fire engines screamed outside of our house and we heard the door break through. Men in fire suits carried hoses, but it never stopped the fire. Emma was sobbing, not only scared of the fire, but Rodger was nowhere. The fire fighters heard our desperate pleas for help, and told us to remain calm. My throat throbbed as the smoke stung it, and crumpled to the ground.

The firemen shouted to us through a mega phone to open the window and jump out. We all ran to the window. There was a giant trampoline like thing waiting to catch us. Erica stepped out onto the window ledge with Owen and Emily, who jumped without hesitation. They probably thought it was fun. Emma on the other hand wasn't what I'd call thrilled.

"N..no. I can't!" She said backing up.

"You have to sweetie, you'll be safe, see even Owen and Emily did it." Erica said looking down at the kids who were lifted off the trampoline by a fireman.

"No, I can't!" Emma wailed.

"Yes you can. We'll jump together." I said squeezing her arm.

Emma took a few seconds before nodding, and took my arm.

"One.. Two... Three..." I said as I launched myself out of the window grasping Emma's arm.

The air was chilly and it was still dark out. All of our neighbors watched in horror as Emma and I fell. Wind whipped my face and Emma was crying, but we landed with a satisfying bounce, and crawled off the trampoline. I hugged her with all my might, her tears soaking my night shirt.

Erica jumped too, running over to us immediately after she landed. She hugged as all and watched as the firemen entered the house once again. They came out again this time carrying a limp body in their arms.

It was Rodger.

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Author's note: This is one of my favorite chapters! I hope you enjoyed it. Comment what you think should happen to Rodger. I'm still deciding what's going to happen to him.

-Happy reading!