Love in Flames: It All Goes Up in Smoke

Oh. I'd almost forgotten that James was a firefighter too.James had claimed that Monica Sloan, the woman Harrison had expressed his overwhelming admiration for, was merely nothing more than his colleague.But in the last six months, Harrison no longer clung to me or needed me. Instead, he asked to spend time at James' workplace, often saying he wanted to see Monica.At first, I didn't think much of it. I assumed it was normal for young children to like hanging out with a pretty young woman.Alas, it had slipped my mind that a man like James would like a pretty young woman too.The constant messages and calls at night had James rushing out of the house even in the middle of the night. Initially, I thought it was due to emergencies at work. After all, firefighters worked to save lives, and that was of the highest priority.Yet, after inadvertently seeing the same name flashing on his screen several times, my sixth sense kicked in belatedly. I realized something was amiss.The cal

While James, Monica, and Harrison celebrated the end of Monica's flawless practice session, the neighbors who'd been alarmed by the fire were busy calling the fire station and questioning them with a frown."Why did you people only send a single firetruck to deal with such a major fire at Jasper Heights? Do you not take our lives and safety seriously?"After a brief silence, the dispatcher explained, "We didn't receive any reports of a fire at Jasper Heights. Can I confirm with you that you're reporting a fire in the area? I'll send a fire crew out at once!"In less than a minute, James' phone started ringing."Jasper Heights? I'm already here. No one was harmed. You don't need to send anyone else over."The dispatcher continued speaking, but James firmly declared that he would assume full responsibility if anything happened. Once the dispatcher confirmed that no one was hurt, he decided against sending another fire crew over.James had put the call on speaker mode, which meant t

Work was far more urgent. Even though James wanted to have dinner with Monica, he had no choice but to rush back to Jasper Heights.The fire, which hadn't been put out, had spread into a raging sea of flames before the other fire crew arrived. The windows exploded from the heat, and the glass shards scattered everywhere, emitting piercing sounds.All of the furniture and household items had been incinerated in the fire, turning into clouds of smoke and piles of ashes.The cries from the neighbors, the siren of the fire trucks, and the crackling sound of the flames formed the soundtrack of a tragedy.Gregory Hanks, the station chief, had rushed over as well and harshly rebuked James for his recent poor performance."What on earth has been up with you lately? Many of your colleagues have mentioned that you haven't been giving your full effort! Don't you know how dangerous it is when a fire isn't completely distinguished? This fire even occurred where you live! You better reflect on

Derek was so outraged by Monica's willful words that he started shaking, but just as he was about to speak, James beat him to it."That's enough. It's not a big deal. I submitted a report before I took the fire truck out. As for the deceased victim… I checked on the situation earlier. My house isn't the only one that caught on fire in the neighborhood tonight. You don't need to harp on it."James picked up Harrison before turning to Monica, saying, "Since everything has been settled, let's go and eat our dinner."His arrogant indifference pissed Derek off so much that he kicked a bag that hadn't been destroyed in the fire just yet.It was a tote bag made of fire-resistant material—a gift James gave me on the day he proposed to me."Alice, even though I can't give you a comfortable life right now, I can give you my one and only love. Like this bag I'm giving you now, my love will live on forever, even in the most devastating of fires."Well, half of his promise came true. The bag

Harrison's delayed allergic reaction finally kicked in, and it started spreading rapidly. Rashes popped up all over his body, and he started having difficulty breathing. He even vomited on the bed.Sensing that something was wrong, James quickly turned on the lights and picked Harrison up to take him to the hospital.As he rushed out of the room, he instinctively yelled toward the master bedroom, "Alice, Harry's sick! Come quick!"Except the only person who appeared from the master bedroom was Monica, who'd carefully dolled herself up even though it was in the middle of the night. She stepped out of the bedroom, barefooted and wearing nothing but a thin nightgown.When James saw Monica's frown of displeasure, he realized he'd misspoken. He gave her a quick apology. Surprisingly, he even rejected her offer to come with him as he hurriedly took Harrison to the hospital.Thankfully, Harrison was treated in time, and his life wasn't in danger.The doctor in the emergency room looked