Grillbz closed up shop for the night, and retreated to his room in the back of the diner. Moving over to his nightstand, he picked a small cassette tape and put it in th player. He knew he could use better audio formats if he cared, but he liked the static and the hiss of tapes, like comforting fire in the hearth. He pressed play, and the first song started playing.
"I fell down, down, down, in a burnin' Ring of Fire,
I went down, down, down, and the flames went higher…"
So soothing. And then the next:
"This one goes out to the one I love…. FIIIIIIIIIIIIREEEEEEEEE!"
Frankly, he had no idea what the singer was yelling about, but it seemed to involve fire, and that made him happy.
"Ice, your only rivers run cold
These city lights, they shine as silver and gold
Dug from the night, your eyes as black as coal"
This one was supposedly about fire, but he couldn't actually find any lyrics that corresponded. Huh. It was a nice song, though.
"Naked in the cold sun, breathing life like fire
Thought I was the only one, but that was just a lie"
He didn't quite get why everything was so growly and spaced-out, but it was cool.
"We didn't start the fire, it was always burning, since the world's been turning"
They were right. He started the fire. Fire is good.
"These are the things, the things we lost, the things we lost in the fire fire fire!"
More fire. How fun.
"Where do bad folks go when they die? They don't go to heaven where the angels fly
They go down to the lake of fire and fry, won't see 'em again till the fourth of July"
A lake of fire. What a lovely vacation spot. He'd have to visit someday.
"My house's out of the ordinary
That's right, don't want to hurt nobody
Some things sure can sweep me off my feet
Burning down the house!"
Whoever was singing, he sounded like a fun dude.
Finally, he came to the last song. Here it was, his favorite of fiery tracks, it was about to begin.
"HEATS! FLAMESMAN! HEATS! FLAMESMAN!
HEATS! FLAMESMAN! HEATS! FLAMESMAN!"
That little punk had recorded himself over the last track! A geyser of flame erupted out of Grillbz' head. The nerve of some people. Well, no matter. Mr. Flamesman would get his due diligence in the morning.
Tracklist:
'Ring of Fire'- Johnny Cash
'The One I Love'- REM
'The Unforgettable Fire'- U2
'Fourth of July'- Soundgarden
'We Didn't Start the Fire'- Billy Joel
'The Things We Lost in the Fire'- Bastille
'Lake of Fire'- Nirvana/Meat Puppets
'Burning Down the House'- Talking Heads
'HEATS! FLAMESMAN!'- Heats Flamesman