Here's chapter four... and over 250 hits, and ONE review? (Thank you EternalIce XD ) c'mon people! You can do better than that...
Disclaimer: I do not own any recognisable characters :(
Dimitri's POV
It was the screaming that woke me up.
I opened my eyes, but everything was out of focus so I closed them again; my head was spinning. It took me a few moments to realise that I was hot. Too hot. Burning. I opened my eyes again and, when the room had stopped spinning, I noticed my surroundings. I was on the floor, and there was a red/orange glowing light not too far away. The rest was covered in a thick, black smoke. I'd bet my bottom dollar that if I held my hand out in front of my face, I wouldn't be able to see it. It was then that I realised my left arm was trapped. I could feel scorching pains all the way up my left side, and I was finding it hard to breathe. Whilst I was checking my injuries, I didn't realise that the black cloud was pressing down on my even more, and the heat was intensifying.
The fire was getting closer.
I had to move.
I tired pulling my arm free, but the pain was too intense. I tried to use my other hand to lift whatever it was that was trapping my arm, but it was too heavy. At a closer look, it was one of the beams that held the ceiling up. The fire had obviously damaged it, but it was still way too heavy for me to lift. Maybe, if I wait here, someone will come or I will magically gain the strength to-
It's never going to happen. I'm going to have to manage.
After hundreds of failed attempts, I had managed absolutely nothing. My arm was hurting even more from trying to pull it free. How the hell was I going to get out of here? The fire was getting closer. It was so close I could almost feel the flames licking at my feet.
My feet. I was one hell of a runner. I was yet to find anyone - not professionally trained - that could run faster than me. My high school gym teacher said my leg muscles were one of the strongest he had ever seen. Admittedly, I was nearly 30 and he had said that when I was 18, and I hadn't been working out as often as I once did, but I was still a pretty decent runner.
I have no idea how I did it. But I managed to roll onto my side, wedge my feet under part of the fallen beam, and pushed. It didn't move much, but it did move. I pushed it again and again, using my hands this time, and I gradually managed to move it enough to pull my arm out. Jesus Christ. The thing on the end of my arm looked nothing remotely like a hand. It was pretty much flat, covered in burns and I couldn't feel it. At all.
My inspection was cut short when a small explosion to my left distracted me. The roaring fire was so close now; it felt as if my face was melting. I jumped up - well, staggered - and started for the stairs. Shit. I couldn't put any weight on my left ankle. I don't think it was broken, but a serious sprain maybe? It didn't matter. It hurt like hell.
Nevertheless, I had to get out of here. I couldn't see anything, but every floor had pretty much the same layout, so the stairwell should be to the right. It took me twice as long as it probably would to reach the banisters. It was not only the fact that I couldn't walk properly, but also the fact that I couldn't even see my own nose. I suppose, the smoke was a blessing in disguise - I could imagine what kind of devastation was all around me. I stumbled many times, and I really didn't want to know what over.
I hadn't thought past getting to the stairs, but now I realised what a problem they posed. How was I going to get down them? I had a busted ankle, and I couldn't lean against the banister because my left arm was also ruined. I looked up, and my decision was made. The fire was making its way down the stairs, much faster than it had in the office. I was going to have to grit my teeth and bare it.
I hopped/hobbled down a few flights, but I wasn't fast enough. I was having a hard enough time breathing as it is, and the smoke was rolling down the stairs, covering me like a thick blanket. However, this did not offer comfort or relief from the cold. This blanket was toxic, snatching the breath from my lungs. It was smothering me, and I was in danger of falling. I had lost the ability to see the next step some time ago, but I had run out of time to feel my way down. If I fell now, all my efforts would be fruitless. What was the point? I should just stop here, let the fire claim another victim, leave the world with one less lawyer in -
Bella.
That one word, that one woman brought me out of my suicidal thoughts. I couldn't leave her. Not without saying good bye, without telling her I loved her one last time. I could not be that selfish. It would not only kill me, but her too; not physically, but it would shatter her spirit. I know because the same would happen to me if any harm was to come to her.
With my conviction still strong in my head, I got back on my feet - foot - and started feeling my way down the stairs. It took longer than it had before, and the fire was getting closer and closer. The flames had licked at my back and head more than once, and I had had to wing-it and jump to escape them, but I was sure I was making progress. But I wouldn't last long. I was really feeling the strain in my ankle and my back was burning. Not only that, but it was getting harder and harder to breathe; more than once I'd had to stop to catch my breath. Hacking coughs racked my body often, and they were becoming more and more frequently. The world was starting to spin, and I knew I had to get out of the stair well soon.
One step.
Two steps.
Three steps four steps five steps.
Six
Seven eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven twelve
How many more? Please, I can't carry on much longer,
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
.
.
.
Sixteen
.
.
.
.
.
Seventeen
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
At last! The relief that washed through me the moment I laid eyes on the red office door was overwhelming. The crackling behind me was deafening as I used the last of my strength to push through the door. I fell to the floor as I heard the door slam shut behind me.
Panting from my efforts, I tried to sit up, but the pain that ripped through my torso crippled me. I gasped out in pain. The next breath I took was excruciating. And the next. And the next. What was happening to me? I began to get light headed and the darkness threatened to take me again. I was exhausted and was welcoming it. There was definitely something wrong with my chest, my arm and ankle was throbbing and most of my body felt like it was on fire - I had checked and it wasn't.
At least I had tried. I gave it my best, and I was happy at that. My only regret was that I would never see my wife again never get to tell her what she meant to me, that I had noticed her the first day she was to the UoW, and it had taken me nearly two years to pluck up the courage to ask her out. When she said yes my heart had soared. It was the most I had ever expected, and I was shocked to say the least when she had accepted my next offer to go out. Five years later and I treasured every single day I had spent with her. I wish I had the chance to see her, just one last time.
As I succumbed to the darkness the thought that I would see Bella again, in heaven or wherever I was going, kept a smile on my face, and made the thought of death bearable.
What do you think? You know what I want... ;)
And for my next chapter, should I do an Edwards POV? Or more Bella?