" Goodnight sweetheart, I love you," whispered Nicky to Danitra.
" I yove you too daddy."
" I love you too baby. Be safe," said Shari to her husband.
" I always am. I love you too," Nicky said, pecking both of their cheeks.
It was this dialog that had occurred earlier that evening that kept Nicky alive. He could feel the heat of the flames flickering around him, clutching a limp and useless fire hose. He had been in the middle of putting out a medium-sized fire when something happened, and the hose lost all pressure. He heard something on the radio that there had been some problem with the fire hydrants not having enough water in them, and trying to find some water elsewhere as soon as possible. Immediately after, flames grew and surrounded the pair that had been fighting the fire. It was strange how minutes ago, this had been a regular, average, no risk fire that he could have handled with his eyes closed. It had escaladed to the point where he was seeing his life flash before her eyes. He saw his daughter and wife, the two girls who meant so much to him, the promises he had made, everything from building a playhouse to not getting hurt. He thought about the pain he had gone through with his dad, now his daughter might face. His mother, how little time he had spent with her lately. He hated the look she gave him whenever she saw him. He looked so much like his father, and with his uniform on, it was hard not to miss the resemblances. His mother had been at first hesitant about Nicky perusing such a dangerous job. The thought of losing someone else she cared so much about was unbearable. But she understood that this was something that Nicky had to do for himself, and she had really grown proud of him and his decision. Nicky thought of his little sister, a mother herself. He thought of her walking down the aisle on her wedding day. All by herself. No father/daughter dance. Of course he'd been delighted when he had become an uncle. But, if truth be told, he had never spent as much time as he should have. He vowed to enjoy life, and spend it to the fullest with everyone he loved if he could get out of her alive. And then he blacked out.