Fire Girl [COMPLETED]

Part 20

Part 20

After running for a minute or so, I found that the ice got thicker as I advanced. The sky was clouded and cold wind was blowing from almost all directions. I clutched my coat as the wind gradually got stronger making it hard for me to walk.

Then I spotted him. He had his back turned to me and I realized that he was not moving. I pushed myself towards him, cutting through the bitter cold winds. I inched closer to the place where he was sitting and fell 'plop' on the ice ground before him.

"Stacey?"He asked looking at me wide eyed. He seemed like he never expected me there. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask the same question to you. Why didn't you tell me where you were going, you idiot?!" I half yelled at him. I was really mad at him. Steam rose from the ground as I realized that my hands were melting the ice floor.

"I didn't want anyone to know" he replied sighing slowly. He had turned his face away from me now.

Dressed in a deep grey coat and sweatpants, Tom sat very still on the ground.

"Sabrina is recovering" I said, hoping that it might cheer him up.

As I had expected, he turned his head to look at me with surprise. His eyes became bright again.

"Is she okay?" he asked in a hesitant small voice.

"She is still in the hospital. My mother is taking care of her now" I said.

"She is in good hands then" said Tom smiling.

I smiled back.

Tom came to say something, but then he stopped put his head down.

"You have to go now" said Tom in a deep low voice.

"Only if you come back with me" I said.

Tom looked up at me surprised.

"Stacey you don't understand. You have to go now!"He said. His voice was breaking. "I am turning into ice"

I gasped as he tapped his legs with his hands. They were ice and I had failed to notice that.

"Only few more seconds left. I will turn fully into ice as the sun sets down."He said.

"But To-om, how can this happen?" I asked not understanding anything. My voice faltered and there were tears in the corner of my eyes.

"My curse had a deadline that I obviously didn't know about" he shrugged. Even in his last moments, he put a brave smiling face for me.

"Oh my gosh! Tom!" I gasped half crying "Why didn't you tell me?"

He just shrugged. "Nobody even bother that I exist." He said.

"I bother" I said protesting and still crying. "You are important to me, Tom! You always were!"

Tom face had a pitiful expression.

"Thank you for being a wonderful friend to me, Stacey. I really like you. A lot." he said stretching out his hand to tug a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

When he tried to pull back his arm, it froze mid air.

I let out a small scream jerking back.

Tom tried to yank his hand. He was nervous and scared, but he never showed it in his face.

After several failed attempts of pulling back his hand. Tom gave up.

"I guess that's it. Good bye forever." He said smiling meekly.

"No" I said with tears in my eyes.

I only got to know him. I can't lose him already. Besides, he doesn't even know that I love him.

"I kinda like that boy, Ryan." He said all of a sudden.

Ryan? Where did Ryan come from?

"I hope he helps breaks your curse before it's too late." He said looking at me with a hopeful smile.

I was confused.

"Help break my curse?" I asked angling my head.

"You love him, don't you?" asked Tom innocently.

Me? Love Ryan? Jerk! The only person I have ever loved was YOU.s

"No Tom, I don't love him" I answered with an expressionless face.

"Oh" he answered. His smile disappeared.

"But you guys hang around a lot. He even took you out, right?" inquired Tom.

I shook my head in dismay.

"Ryan and I were just good friends. We were lab partners and we sometimes think alike. We sync." I said.

"Oh dear" I heard Tom mutter under his breath.

"And we did go out once. We went to the new China place where he treated me on winning the Science fair. Amber was supposed to come too. But she couldn't make it, because she was sick. But Tom I never loved him" I continued holding my breath.

"I never knew I was this blind" said Tom shaking his head now.

"Seems you are" I felt slightly disappointed.

Just then, the ice from his arms travelled all the way up to his torso.

I shrieked again.

"I wish I had told you this earlier, Stacey. I love you." He said in a hurried tone.

"What?" I asked out loud surprised.

The sky was darkening and the ice in his body travelled further up.

"I wanted to tell you. But I knew not how. Then one day I saw you and Ryan chatting happily together...and you know what I guessed. But I am happy that you knew at least now, before I die. I wish we could have spent more time together. I love you Stacey Reynolds" Said Tom. His voice was straining as the ice travelled up his body.

I was shell shocked. Tom loved me and I was only lucky enough to hear it from him in his last words.

I held his frozen hand.

"Don't leave Tom!" I said with tears rolling from my cheeks.

"I love you too." I whispered with my eyes closed.

In a fraction of a second, the ice struck his heart and travelled all the way up to the tip of his very head.

Tom turned into an ice sculpture. The curse had devoured him.

"No!" I let out a small cry. I was still holding his hand which was now only an ice crystal.

"No!!" I cried out. Loud this time.

My hands were glowing red.

I heated tom's hands trying to melt the ice off.

I had closed my eyes and gradually turned my fire girl mode on.

I continued heating his hand until all the hard ice melted away and I could feel the softness of his hands.

He was not just frozen on the outside. He was frozen from the inside. I started radiating heat but was careful not to overdo else I might burn him.

Slowly, the ice that covered his hands and torso melted off and I could feel the blood rushing in his veins again. Seconds later I thought I felt a positive pulse.

His body was completely thawed from ice now but he still didn't speak or open his eyes. I continued my heating process until a point of time when I suddenly grew cold and fainted.