In the back of her mind, somehow, she knew it would always come to this. This thing that she'd been ignoring for almost half a year now. This very real possibility that could bring about the end to absolutely everything.
Now, it's impossible to ignore, monopolizing her senses and insisting acknowledgment. She sees it in the way that Mia's face is glowing a bright orange as she stares at the building in front of them. She can feel it in the burning smolder across her skin–hot and unrelenting. The smell is pungent, and even if Mia's face and the heat showering her body didn't clue Joelle in enough to what's happening before them, there would be no mistaking the odor of smoke and burning wood.
Finally, she forces herself to turn her head and see the building as it truly is: a state of chaos similar to the crowd around it. Somewhere close by, a toddler cries out. There is already a fire engine at the scene; sirens and horns continue to blare from afar, signaling that at least one more is close and on the way. The sidewalk surrounding the building is wet, but evidently nothing can soothe the flames that lick up the bricks of the building, bursting out of the windows.
It's unlike anything she's ever seen, and for the first time she allows herself to think it: this could be the fire that finally kills him.
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Slow Burn | HS
FanfictionFor Joelle Katler, life's been all right. She's at school in her favorite state, she's living with her best friend, and there's always a bottle of wine ready to be popped in her fridge. And that's okay. For Harry Styles, life passes by. He's pa...
