Author's Note: Angst in this chapter and in some others, just to warn you.
Chapter Two
Fire!
As the siren wailed right outside Miracle's friend's doorway, she sighed in annoyance and grabbed her purse. Fire drills were a frequent occurrence in the dormitory she shared with her friend, and who her other friend was visiting with. As usual, Miracle felt annoyed that yet another college freshman didn't know how to use a microwave. She knew how to safely heat up food in the microwave since she was in middle school!
That's when Miracle began to smell thick smoke. Coughing, Miracle made her way to the door and cautiously opened it. Fire blocked the stairs, roaring toward her room. Remembering that there were stairs on the other side of the hallway, Miracle ran in front of the hallway, praying that her lungs wouldn't give way from the smoke entering her body.
Just as Miracle opened the door and started down the stairs, one of her feet refused to move, making her body spiral downward. Seeing a repeat of floor and ceiling, and feeling her body hit each step, Miracle realized that she was falling down the stairs. After what felt like an hour, even though it was only a few minutes, Miracle finally crashed to a stop on the floor.
Coughing and wincing at the pain around her ribcage, Miracle opened her eyes to have them blurred by smoke. A few seconds later, pain flared on her ribs as two people ran over her to get out of the building. Miracle blurrily made out the forms of her friends as they raced down the hall, not listening to her weak calls.
Why even try getting out of here, Miracle wondered. My friends have left me behind, no one would miss me, and I'm too weak to stand up, Miracle thought as weakness overtook her body. But, I have to try, I can at least still crawl toward the door, it's not that far.
Lifting her upper body with her hands, Miracle started crawling toward the door. In seconds, Miracle's head was submerged in a cloud of smoke, making her drop to the ground and cough so hard that she feared one of her lungs would rush up her throat and out of her mouth into her hand. Miracle lay on the ground, cursing her choice of not taking the house fire practical test with everyone else, all because of her lung condition.
"So, this is how I die," Miracle gasped between coughs.
"Miracle, thank goodness I found you," a caring voice that sounded familiar, spoke.
"Leave me alone," Miracle began, but she was interrupted by her own coughing.
"C'mon, let's get out of here," the voice spoke again, not replying to hsd last comment. Miracle could barely make out a red bear shape with a red heart on its white stomach. The bear pulled Miracle by her arms as her vision began to blur even more than it had before, making colors run together.
Why was this figment of my imagination even trying, Miracle wondered as she felt herself losing consciousness. We'll never make it to the door, anyway.