Chapter 5

Destruction

The bedroom was filling with smoke. Aaron was staring into nothingness, in shock. He had just witnessed Spencer's death. He was still shaking with grief, tears were still drying on his skin.

"Aaron! Move, we've got to get out!" Spencer went over to the bed. He shook Aaron. "Come on!"

Aaron focused on Spence. "Spence?" Aaron gripped Spencer's arms. "Spence, you're ok!"

A puzzled frown flashed across Spencer's face.

"Yeah! I'm fine. Come on. Get down on the floor."

He picked up his mobile form beside the bed and called 911.

Aaron was mesmerized by Spencer, confused, and scared. Spence led Aaron to the door.

Aaron suddenly remembered!

"No, Spence. Not that way." Aaron pulled at Spencer's arm. "We have to go out of the window!"

Aaron pushed the bedroom door closed and pushed a rug along the bottom. "The window, Spence."

Spencer followed Aaron to the window. "You sure, Love?"

"Yes! I'm certain!" Smoke was creeping around the door; it wasn't going to hold for long. Aaron pushed at the window.

"Spence, I can't open it. Help me. It won't open!" Aaron was starting to panic. His dream was real and before his eyes. He was still in shock. He couldn't lose Spence. Not again.

Spencer picked up a chair and smashed the window. Using the quilt, he broke out the glass around the edges..

Spence looked at Aaron again. He was moving as if in a daze. He took his hand.
"We've got to get out!"

Aaron felt the floor getting hot under his feet, little wisps of smoke…….The dream….

"Oh no, Spence! Hurry!" Aaron was getting frantic. He held onto Spencer with both hands. "I won't let you go, Spence, never."

Spencer wanted to ask Aaron what he meant, but there was no time.

A sudden surge of heat as the door exploded in flame. Aaron could feel the heat on his back. They were at the window, looking down. It was dark and they couldn't see what was below them. They were on the first floor; there was nothing to climb down.

"Aaron, we are going to have to jump!" Spencer sat on the window sill and swung his legs out.

Aaron sat next to Spencer. They clutched onto each other's hands. There was a sudden roar as the floor of the bedroom gave way.

"We jump on three!" Aaron counted. They held tightly to each other. Together, they jumped out of the window.

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Aaron opened his eyes. He didn't know how long he had been out for, but he didn't think it had been long, as the emergency services hadn't arrived. He was still holding Spencer's hand. He squeezed it.

"Spence! Spencer? Are you ok?"

Spencer didn't move. Aaron didn't feel injured. He touched the dressing on his chest. It felt dry, the stitches held. He carefully got onto his knees checking himself as he moved. He turned to Spencer, and looked at him to check him out.

The iron pale stuck up through Spencer's thigh, bloody and glistening in the firelight.

His eyes were closed, his skin ashen.

Aaron took Spencer's face in his hands. "Spence! Wake up!"

Spencer's eyes fluttered open "Aaron? Did we get out?"

"We're out, Spence, but you have hurt your leg. Just don't try to move."

"Hurts, Aaron." Spencer murmured. "Help…."

"Help is on its way, Sweetheart." He could see the flashing lights of the fire engine through the trees.

Aaron put his arms around Spence, lifting him, holding him close. Spencer's face and body were sooty and dirty, the blood on his leg black in the flickering fire. Aaron pressed his face in Spencer's hair. It smelled of fire and soot,

Aaron felt the shock of the dream again. He held him tight against his body.

"You're going to be fine, Babe." Aaron kissed him on dry sooty lips. "I love you so much."

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A fireman cut the spike under Spence's leg while several paramedics held him. Aaron paced up and down outside his ruined house. He stared up at the front wall. Amazingly, most of it still stood, although there was nothing behind it.

He felt no sadness, no loss. Only relief that he wouldn't ever again have to feel the sadness of losing his family when ever he was there alone. He turned his back on the smoldering remains, both physically and mentally, and walked back to where Spence was being cut from the fence.

Aaron bent down and looked at the remains of the iron pale. He tried to think how it had got there. Aaron had never used this in his garden, and couldn't think how it had come to be below his window.

He watched the people working on Spencer. He wanted to get close to him, but the medics were all around him, and there wasn't room. Spence had an Entinox mask over his face. His tear filled eyes were wide, looking for Aaron. Aaron stood close so they could see each other, even if they couldn't touch. It was breaking his heart, seeing Spence like that and not being able to get close.

Spencer groaned weakly behind the mask as the metal was finally cut through. The paramedics lifted him onto a stretcher, and carried him to the ambulance. Aaron followed.

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Another wait in the ER. Aaron called Morgan. He told him about the fire, and their escape.

"You don't need to come down, Derek. Reid's ok. They've just got to get the spike out of his leg."

"The what?" How…..what spike?..."

Aaron could see this could get difficult. How was he going to explain?"

"He's ok, really. He fell on an iron fence pale. It sounds worse than it is." Aaron hoped that Derek would be satisfied. Derek didn't ask any more questions, but that didn't mean he didn't have any.

Spencer wasn't in the OR for long. As soon as he was out the doctor told Aaron that Spence was lucky, and it could have been a lot worse.

Aaron waited in the ante-room for Spence to come out of recovery.

The dream he had was still playing over and over in his mind. The image of Spencer lying in the burning debris of his house made his stomach knot every time he rememberd, and even though he knew it was a dream, it frightened him, and the adrenalin rush that accompanied the image made him feel physically sick.

He pushed his hands into his hair and rested his elbows on his knees.

Spence, what's going on? Help me sort this mess out!

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Aaron sat by Spence in yet another hospital ward. They were both wearing hospital gowns, and pyjamas. The PJ bottoms they had been wearing were in the bin.

"If this didn't hurt so damn much, it would almost be funny!" groaned Spence. "I can't believe we are back here again!"

He looked serious. "Were the fire fighters able to save anything?"

Aaron shook his head. Spencer reached for Aaron's hand. "I am so sorry, Aaron."

"I'm not. It's a good way to restart my life now. I've wanted to do it before, but I've not had then courage. Now it has been done for me, It's a relief."

Aaron told Spence about the paling.

"I don't understand how it got there, Spence. I didn't leave it there, and I've never used iron fencing on my garden."

"Aaron, have you spoken to the fire fighters about how the fire started?"

"I had a phone call. It was faulty wiring."

"Would you do something for me, Aaron?"

"Sure, Babe, anything."

"Would you call Morgan and get him to check?" Spencer looked straight at Aaron. "There's something badly wrong here, Sweetheart. The fencing being under the window, the faulty wiring, the car in the car park, the mugging, it's all too much." Spencer squeezed Aaron's hand. "Please, check it out."

Aaron nodded. "Yes I will, I'm sorry I didn't believe you before, Spence."

Spencer smiled. "I'm only in overnight, Love. If everything is ok, I'm out tomorrow on crutches. We'll sort this thing out together."