"SUZIE!", she screamed full of fear and desperation. "WHERE ARE YOU!" She couldn't see through the smoke, every second she spent in the there was making it harder and harder to breath. The heat was so hard to bear but she had to find Suzie. The fire was only growing by the minute and the nearest fire-fighter station was miles away, the orphanage would be nothing but ashes by the time they arrived. As she bounded up the creaking stairs through the black smoke to look for the girl, she couldn't help but reminisce over the old house's history.
The orphanage had been an old Victorian home, two stories high and a home of a rich aristocrat. The owner had no family though so on his death bed he instructed the home to be converted into an orphanage. She had recently been orphaned when he gave the order house. She had been glad to know that the old man had converted the home into an orphanage, because the nearest one was three towns away. As a young child, she really hadn't wanted to leave the only place she knew, even now seventeen years of age had her decision never changed.
However, at this moment she absolutely hated the Victorian home, because of all the nooks and crannies that little five year old Suzie could hide in. The second floor was almost completely covered in smoke, the only breathable air was being quickly consumed by the fire. It was really ironic that she was stuck in a fire when just outside the building a flurry of snowflakes were falling. However the fire was too strong and despite the raging winds and flurry bits of snow, that seemed to almost attack the fire, it would not be put out.
Her thoughts were beginning to wander, there was a purpose for being there in the middle of a fire, but she couldn't think with all the smoke in her lungs. If the fire didn't kill her the smoke surely would. She couldn't look anymore. Look for what? She wanted to lie down, but she was in a hurry. Why? She was tired and desperate. Desperate for what? she fell to the floor. "Sqqueeee~" She had fallen on a squeaky toy, Suzie's favorite squeaky toy that she never went anywhere without it. Suzie! That's right she still had to find her! The toy was next to a closet, so maybe Suzie was there too. The seventeen year old girl gathered the rest of her strength and flung the closet open, barely even registering the burns the metal door knob had caused. Poor little Suzie was passed out on the ground, with tear tracks smudging her soot covered face.
Thank god… She thought as she picked up the girl, the limited oxygen in the air had weakened her muscles and made the unconscious child a lot heavier than she actually was. By now the fire had grown and consumed more than half the house. As she stumbled down the creaky stairs and out the front door, that had miraculously not caught on fire, she couldn't help but breath out a sigh of relief at the sight and sound of the nearby firefighter lights and sirens that were just a few minutes away, practically obscured by the surrounding forest.
"DIANE!" someone called out. It was sweet old Ms. Hanes running from the edge of the surrounding forest where the rest of the children were at. As soon as Ms. Hanes took the unconscious child from my arms, my legs gave out with relief and exhaustion, adrenaline having worn off. Not once did I feel the biting cold that came with kneeling on the snow in a nightgown. Breathing was surprisingly hard to do as I was trying to get my eyes to focus. Distantly I could hear Ms. Hanes calling out my name, telling me to get farther away from the fire, but I couldn't get my body to respond. Nor, I couldn't catch my breath, wheezing and coughing racked my body as it tried to expel the smoke that I had breathed in. How long was I in the fire? She recalled a documentary she had read : Humans can only survive 4-6 minutes without oxygen, before death. It was more than 5 minutes… 'I saved Suzie... not a bad way to go', she mused and smiled before blacking out.
Black. It was all black. It was peaceful. Am I dead? There was a beeping noise in the background. Not yet, then. She felt tired, cold, and her throat burned. Her chest hurt. The beeping got louder. She felt muddled. She didn't mind dying, but she wasn't exactly ready to give up either. "I don't want to leave...,the others will be so sad, I'll miss them..."was her last thought before the beeping in the background flat lined.
The moonlight was too bright, how was she supposed to sleep if it was shining on her face. She must have left the curtains open, she thought, annoyed at the fact that she would have to fully wake up to close them. Where is my blanket? She moved her arm around, intent on pulling the blanket over her head, in hope of sleeping longer. Now that I think of it, why is it so cold?!She thought groggily finally registering the temperature around her as she shivered. Her hand touched snow covered ground. Did I fall asleep outside? She thought, incredulously, as she was finally roused from her sleep. "What the hell?" she murmured to herself as she sat up and saw the burned remains of a home. Charred ash and blackened bits of wood marred the pure white of the snow around it. The only things that remained of the home was the base structure. Then the memories of the past events and her life finally caught up with her. My home… it's all gone… and then Diane realized, one more thing, that was very important : she was supposed to be dead.
Note: This work can also be found on Archive of Our Own under my other name, Mistress_Jinx ,no I am not ripping off another author.