The following Monday I asked at the school for a cleaning job, but the Principal was a little reluctant to let me clean because apparently it ‘wasn’t a teacher’s place to be seen doing that’. However, he did offer to give me an extra hour and a half work each day. Instead of cleaning, I was helping in one of the after school clubs. It worked out perfectly because I was allowed to have DJ there for free, so I didn’t need to arrange additional childcare. Everything was great again. Josh hadn’t called me for the last two weeks, so I was a little unsure where we stood but, from what he’d said, he still wanted to see DJ. Today was Friday, and this was his custody weekend, so I’d just have to wait and see if he turned up to collect his son or not. Jace was less than happy with him; well, ‘less than happy’ seemed to the understatement of the century. He’d insisted on being there tonight in case Josh came. I had visions of their being a stand-off and threats of decapitation if Jos
Jace’s hand trailed under my shirt, caressing my stomach as he pressed his chest against my back, trapping me against the counter. I closed my eyes and just enjoyed the attention and the feel of his body pressed against mine. I was seriously going to miss him in the bed tonight. When Jace wrapped his body around mine, I slept like a baby every time. We watched TV for a little while, flicking through channels, not really settling on anything. I didn’t care what we did, to be honest, I was just happy to sit on the sofa in silence and hold his hand. At nine o’clock, he sighed dramatically. “I’d better go,” he grumbled. One of his hands moved to cup my face, guiding my mouth to his gently. He kissed me softly then groaned as he pulled away. “I hate the night shift.” Me too. “I’ll tell you what, tomorrow night I’ll make up for two nights in one,” I promised, looking at him suggestively as I licked my lips slowly. His body stiffened as he sucked in a breath through his t
My lip trembled, shaking my head in horror as the guy ignored his teammate, trying again to get through the flames to my trapped son. When he stumbled and fell against the burning wall, he jumped back, and I saw his shoulders slump as he turned to look at me. Even through the thick mask he was wearing, I could see the sadness and sorrow his eyes. My heart shattered into a thousand pieces as I understood his apologetic expression. He was silently telling me he couldn’t rescue my baby. “NO! DJ!” I screamed, trying to wrench my arm out of the other guy’s grasp. There was no way I was leaving my child in there, fire or not, I was getting to him. “Momma!” DJ wailed. Through the haze and the smoke, his red rimmed eyes met mine, and I knew I would never get that look of sheer and utter horror out of my brain. I moved to run towards him, not caring that the flames were everywhere in the room, that even the walls were on fire. I just needed my baby safe. I made it only three st
As soon as I stepped into the door, I immediately recoiled from the heat. I flinched back against the wall, squinting, trying to see the little red box that I knew was down at the bottom of the stairs. I fumbled my way along the wall until my fingers grazed the protruding box, silently praying someone else hadn’t already taken it. “Come on, please, come on,” I mumbled, coughing from the smoke that filled my lungs. I ran my fingers over the front and let out the breath I was holding when I realised that the glass was intact. Pulling my arm back, I thrust my elbow into it, smashing the glass. Shoving my hand inside quickly, I grabbed the small fire extinguisher and fire blanket from inside. I silently thanked my training because things like scoping out the nearest exit or points of interests –like fireboxes – stuck in my mind. Keeping my back against the wall, I slowly made my way up the stairs, counting them as I went so I could keep track. The flames were everywhere. I tri
I looked back at the flames that were outside his door, they were making their way into the room now. Now that the door was open, the fire was rapidly setting DJ’s carpet on fire too. If we didn’t get out soon then it’d be too late. He didn’t have a window in his bedroom, so the only way out was through the flames, back the way I came. I had no idea how we were going to do that though. I barely made the jump last time, now though the fire had spread and I would be carrying a four-year-old. My heart sank, but my head refused to give up. Struggling to get back to my feet, I picked up the little fire extinguisher from the floor. I mentally planned everything out. This was going to have to happen fast. I looked back to DJ and smiled. “Right, I’m going to spray the fire then I’m gonna pick you up and we’ll jump back to the lounge. Now, I only have one arm, so I’m not going to be able to hold you very much. I need you to hold onto me as tight as you can. Really, really tight, ok
Agony like nothing I had ever felt before ripped through my whole body as I smashed into the ground. I’d tried to turn so that I could protect DJ as much as I could, I knew he would get hurt, but it was the best I could do under the circumstances. Thankfully, I landed feet first instead of on my back. One of my ankles cracked, my knees buckled and popped, and we fell forwards. I immediately panicked because DJ was clinging to my chest. If I fell forward I could crush him and he would hit his head. Placing my hand on the back of his head to limit the damage, I put my elbows out to try and keep some of my weight off him. Shooting pains coursed up my already damaged arm making the air whoosh out of my lungs. I twisted my body and rolled slightly, my shoulder and hips connecting with the cold hard floor next. The side of my head struck the concrete making my eyes unfocussed. Then I felt the burning on my lower body. People were shouting, screaming around us. I could still hear
I pulled the mask off my face so I could talk. “There goes my dancing plans this weekend,” I joked, shifting uncomfortably on the bed. The doctor laughed quietly. “Because of the burns to your legs, we can’t cast it straight away. We need to let the skin heal a little before we can cover it. We’ll have to leave the temporary one on for a few days, then see how you’re getting on after that. You’ll have to stay here for a few days, I’m afraid. The burns need monitoring, and you’ll be started on a two week course of antibiotics to ward off any infections.” I frowned. I really didn’t want to stay here, I hated hospitals. “Will the burns heal or…” I trailed off, wondering what my legs were going to look like after this. The worst of it was on my right leg, covering most of my shin. He nodded. “We’ll move you to the burns centre as soon as we’ve dealt with your other injuries. They’re more equipped to deal with it there. You were very lucky though. The dampness of your cloth
I took a deep breath, willing myself not to mess it up. “As soon as you said those three words to me, I was going to drop down on one knee and propose to you.” I said it quickly before I wimped out and didn’t do it. She didn’t react how I thought she would though. She didn’t gasp and look at me shocked. Instead, she burst out laughing, shaking her head. “That’s a good one,” she replied around her giggles, settling herself back down onto the bed next to me. I remained silent, waiting for her to catch on that I wasn’t joking. Slowly, I saw it sink in. The giggles stopped, and the smile slowly faded from her face as her eyes widened. “Oh God, seriously?” she asked breathlessly. I nodded in confirmation. “Seriously. But your timing ruined that for me too. I can’t exactly get down on one knee right now because one’s busted and the other leg’s broken, so that plan’s out of the window.” I laughed at my choice of words. Out of the window – yeah, it literally was. “Jace, wh