The Scent Of You

Chapter 11

You have to see and smell and feel the circumstances of people
To really understand them.
-Kamala Harris

"Yeri's still inside." Joohyun is breathless, panicky, and it takes every single cell in Seungwan's body not to be in hysterics herself. She dimly hears someone calling the fire department in the background and grips Joohyun's shoulders with both hands.

"Calm down, Joohyun. It's starting to rain, and the fire department's on their way here. Yeri will be fine."

Joohyun shakes off her hands and glares daggers at her. "You don't know that! She may not mean anything to you, but she is everything to me, Seungwan. She is my world, and I'm not just going to wait for help to come and save her, because she might be dead by then!" Her voice crescendos to a shout as she fumes, and with one last disparaging glance at Seungwan runs head-first into the burning building.

"Shit!" Seungwan makes a futile grab for Joohyun, completely missing her wrist by a good few inches. How reckless could Joohyun be to run into a burning building, knowing full well that she could possibly develop smoke inhalation symptoms, even death? It makes no sense to Seungwan why she would ever dare to risk her life for another without the possibility of reaping any benefits. But then again, she never really had anyone to bother endangering her life for.

Not until Joohyun, at least. Not until the both of them got tangled up in this ridiculous case she took up that, now that she thinks about it, she's not getting paid for. Then she curses, tugging at her hair in frustration at her idiocy. Stupid!, she mentally berates herself. Joohyun, diagnosed with freaking Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, has the worst reactions to any scent that bears even the slightest resemblance to smoke, and she runs into a burning shophouse without a second thought. And to top it all off, Seungwan let her run in by herself! Just great, Seungwan, what was the use of having a brain and studying so much if you can't even remember such a simple thing?

Seungwan dashes up the stairs to where the fire is brightest, her eyes desperately searching for Joohyun and Yeri as she enters the once-homely living quarters. The wooden floor beneath her feet grows hotter with every second, although she is too worried to notice the difference. "Joohyun!" she shouts as she pushes away rogue bags and furniture. Seungwan hears a hacking cough and whips her head towards the sound, and there she is: Joohyun with sweat-slick skin, leaning against a collapsed roof beam, hair sticking to her neck as she gags and clutches at her throat.

Seungwan quickly makes her way to the woman, and in one deft movement unlocks the clasp on her motorcycle helmet and secures it firmly over Joohyun's head, lowering the visor to limit the amount of smoke Joohyun breathes in. "I need you to breathe slowly," she coaxes as she eases Joohyun to the ground. "Don't panic, just stay calm. Hey, look at me." Tears spring to Joohyun's eyes as she forces herself to keep her eyes trained on Seungwan's face as she tries to slow her breathing.

"Okay, good." Seungwan coughs and brings a hand to her face, covering her nose and mouth. "You need to get out of here. Your sensitivity and this smoke don't go well together, and it's going to help no one right now." She points Joohyun towards the exit and gives her a little push. "Go. I'll take care of Yeri. Go!"

Seungwan stares at Joohyun, making sure the woman is retreating before taking another look around the room. "Yeri!" she yells, and begins to cough again. She crouches, keeping low to try and avoid excess smoke inhalation. Not hearing any response, she gets on all fours and crawls towards the bedroom. A small glimpse of bare feet on the bed is all she needs. Seungwan scrambles up and shakes an unconscious Yeri to no avail. "Shit, Yeri!" The young girl's chest is barely moving, and Seungwan is afraid she might have breathed in too much smoke already.