Short Story Collection

Short Story 3: A Fire Inside(TRIGGER WARNING)

It had been more than 2 weeks since the fire, but the stink of it was still in her hair, on her skin. She took long showers twice a day, but the smell lingered. When she closed her eyes at night, the images came back to her, images of a party gone so, so wrong.

The night started with giggles and too many fruity drinks. Then she was dancing, spinning around in the technicolor lights. Then, a handsome guy was yelling in her ear over the music, and she laughed and leaned into him. 

Then... that's when things got blurry.

Flashes of memories pulsed through her mind: going upstairs with the guy. Flirting. Kissing. Then, he was taking off her pants, and she was pushing him away. He started being rougher with her. tugging her pants to get them down and she was screaming, but a hot, clammy hand clamped down over her mouth. There was a lot of pain. Struggling to break free. A punch to the head, and the last thing she remembered was knocking over a candle.

When she woke up, the room was orange and red with flames. She was alone, scared, but unable to move or get away. She tried to yell for help, but it was worthless with the deafening sound of walls collapsing from flames. Her tears slowly fell to the scratchy carpet she was lying on and she closed her eyes, accepting her death.

But, she didn't die. When she woke up, she was in the hospital, with a tube down her throat to help her breath. When the cops asked what happened, she just shook her head. "I don't remember" she lied, a huge knot in her stomach. 

Now, she watches herself in the mirror. Months have passed, the burns have faded, but the memory lives on. She looks the same to everyone else, but in her eyes is a fire raging.

And she burns.