Sorry the updates are getting slow, but I'm actually rewriting the last couple chapters, and making some major changes. Stick with me, it will one day get done. Soon. Very soon.
Chapter Ten
It turned out Mrs. Helfing had wanted Bella to mop and vacuum her whole apartment while she was at bingo night at the community center.
Bella, since she figured the good kharma could not hurt at this point, and had nothing else to do, agreed and set to work.
Half the apartment was carpet, the other linoleum and there were the bathroom tiles that said needed to be, individually, scrubbed by hand.
It took Bella a half hour just to find the damn vacuum cleaner, and another hour to work it through the shag carpeting.
She didn't even want to think about how much work the bathroom was going to be, since had literally given her an old toothbrush to do it with.
She heard giggling across the hall, and immediately recognized Rachel's laugh, accompanied by Jacob's as they went into her apartment.
Bella had a chance to look at herself in the mirror, and she looked like a complete mess. Her hair was piled on her head, wrapped by an old bandana, she was wearing an old pair of shorts and tee-shirt. Her face was blotchy red and covered in sweat.
It was shocking to believe Jacob had picked the long-legged gorgeous blonde over her. She thought to herself. Scrubbing extra hard on the particular tile she was working on.
She was concentrating so hard, it took her a minute to notice the smell.
Damn Marcy and her herbal cigarettes. She thought to herself. But then no, she realized, the smoke didn't smell like that type of smoke, it was like a fire. Then she looked up at the front door and noticed that smoke was curling in under the front door.
Bella ran out into the hallway, yelping at how hot the door handle had gotten.
She saw Rachel and Jacob, also standing in the hall, looking confused, looks that only deepened when they saw her.
"I was cleaning…for …" Bella explained weakly.
Bella heard the sirens outside the building. The fire must be bigger then she had thought.
Smoke was filling the hallway, Bella could barely make out Jacob and Rachel who were standing not three feet from here.
"Oh my god." She heard Rachel say.
Rachel looked toward the crackling noise coming from the bottom of the stairs. Yes, the fire was much bigger then they had thought.
Flames were already licking the stairs up, making it impossible to go down them.
Bella was coughing from the smoke filling her lungs.
The sirens were getting louder and louder.
She heard voices yelling.
She felt herself being picked up, then darkness.