The Five Realms

Chapter 14: Beanca II

### Chapter: A Fire in the Heart

Beanca's world shattered the moment Joey plunged into the molten lava. Her mind froze, refusing to process the nightmare unraveling before her eyes. Joey, the person she had quietly admired and cared for—maybe even loved—was gone, consumed by the searing heat of the molten lake. The intense glow from the lava reflected off her wide, tearless eyes, as if the very heat of the scene evaporated the emotions she should have been able to feel.

*This can't be real,* she thought, her heart pounding so hard it hurt. It was as if time had stopped, leaving her trapped in a limbo of helplessness. For an agonizingly long moment, all she could do was stare at the spot where he had disappeared, her knees giving way beneath her, forcing her to the ground.

The others seemed paralyzed too, standing frozen at the edge of the crumbling stone bridge that stretched across the fiery chasm. Steven's calm composure irritated Beanca—he seemed unaffected, almost disinterested. She wanted to scream at him for not reacting, for not showing *something.* How could he just stand there while Joey, the boy she had come to feel so deeply for, had just... vanished?

*How can he be so calm?*

In the blur of emotions, memories flashed through Beanca's mind. She recalled another moment years ago when Joey had nearly drowned at a birthday party. Back then, she had been on the sidelines, watching in horror as others leaped into action. The cold water had been cruel, but this? This was far worse. This was fire, the very essence of destruction, and Joey was supposed to be gone forever this time.

Just as the weight of her grief started to settle in, a voice—*his* voice—cut through the chaos.

"A little help here."

Beanca's heart stuttered, a surge of disbelief and hope overwhelming her. It couldn't be. Yet, when she whipped her head toward the voice, there he was. Joey, clinging to the crumbling edge of the bridge, his body somehow untouched by the lava that should've consumed him. His face was calm, like he had merely tripped and fallen, not thrown himself into a lake of molten fire.

*How?*

Relief slammed into her like a wave, but it was short-lived, quickly replaced by anger. A mix of emotions—love, fear, and betrayal—swirled within her, rising to a fever pitch.

Murtagh reacted swiftly, offering Joey an iron rod to pull him out of the lava. As Joey emerged, his clothes completely burned away, he looked more amused than anything. Joey's laugh—light, carefree, and completely out of place—made Beanca's emotions twist even further. *How can he laugh?* The sight of him, alive and unscathed, should have calmed her, but instead, it only made her frustration deepen.

"Gross!" Chyna's disgusted voice broke through Beanca's inner turmoil, and without thinking, Beanca turned away as well, her cheeks flushing as she tried to suppress the embarrassment. But underneath it all, she was still processing everything—his laugh, his audacity, his *survival*.

Then, Steven, ever the joker, tossed Joey his jacket, which Joey nonchalantly wrapped around his waist. His easygoing nature, his grin—none of it made sense in light of what had just happened. Her frustration bubbled over.

"How the hell are you alive?!" Beanca demanded, her voice sharper than she intended. She hadn't planned to let the words fly out like that, but her feelings had gotten the better of her.

Joey's response was casual, as though her outburst didn't faze him in the slightest. "Oh, you're upset? Let me jump in and try again."

"Don't you dare!" Beanca snapped, her voice trembling with both fear and fury. He was playing it off like a joke, but she couldn't find any humor in it. She couldn't understand how he could be so nonchalant after making her think he was *gone*.