absolutelyannaparker:
“We both will.” Anna reiterated, giving Claire’s hand a squeeze. As the two set off through the crowd, Anna could already hear her aunt Lucille and what she was sure to say when she found out about all of this. Anna would be lucky if she ever got to leave the house again. After her parents died, Lucille became a little too protective. And even though it was understandable, it made life quite difficult for Anna. Of course, now Anna was beginning to understand why Lucille was that way to begin with. You never think something like this will happen to you, until it does. But that was silly to think. Sure, tragedy had followed her and Claire all their lives, but there was no way it had come back to claim them too.
Even if it had, Anna wasn’t going to let it. She pushed onward, surprised at the sheer force she was using to cut through the masses. But of course, it wasn’t that easy. “Dammit!” She hissed, pushing up to her feet in an attempt to get some kind of better view. All she saw was heavy smoke, choking her lungs, and blurring her vision. Quickly, Anna dropped to her knees again, struggling to catch her breath and clear her airway. As Claire cried out, Anna felt a sinking chill in her stomach. No one was coming for them. Everyone in the tent was just as bad off as they were, and even if the fire department were on their way, there was no telling when they’d get here. And by then… anything could happen. They had to get out of here on their town. Together.
“We can. We will. I promise, Claire. I promise.” And Anna was determined to keep that promise. Keeping Claire at her side, Anna moved the opposite way, dodging legs, debris, and anything else in their path. Finally, after what seemed like hours of clambering about on the ground, Anna felt the breezy chill of fresh air. It was only a small gust, but she couldn’t deny the clarity of it. “Claire! Claire, it’s this way! It’s this way, I’m sure of it!” There was nothing else it could be. Nearly numb on adrenaline, Anna scrambled towards the opening just a few feet away. “Here, take my hand–”
As Anna reached out for Claire, a mess of decorations and support beams from above came crashing down between them. Anna’s certain she screamed, her throat raw and aching, but no sound comes out. A strong pair of hands grabbed her, pulling her through the opening in the tent. “No!” She screamed, struggling in their grip. Two men, both in full fire fighter gear step in front of her, another continuing to pull her away. “Claire! No, no, no!” With every bit of strength she had left, Anna wrenched away from the man, immediately racing back to the tent. “Claire!” She shouted into the darkness. “I promised, I promised, I promised–” It’s all she can say as she began clawing through the debris, tears streaming down her face.
“Yes,” said Claire and nodded her head fiercely when Anna said they would both be okay, “We will.” She had to believe it even though nothing about the sea of fire and smoke around them made it easy for her. Life had been hard these last couple of years, and for a second Claire couldn’t help think about the irony - how just a couple of years ago she hoped something would take her away and reunite her with her son, and now she was on her knees, fighting for her life. It wasn’t until the last year she really realised how much she still had to live for - her parents, that had fought so hard to adopt her, her brother who was there through thick and thin and her friends, Anna for one, who had been through so much already, Sophie and Julius, Liliana, Gaige and Erik. And then there was Ethan… Her first love and the man she wanted to grow old with. She had so much to live for still - she felt it now more than ever.
Blinking furiously as if it would keep the smoke away, Claire watched as Anna got to her feet. “No- Anna, don’t! The smoke-“ She grabbed at her leg and pushed up next to her when she came back down again. “Are you okay? Are you okay?” She repeated a couple of times and brushed strands of the other woman’s hair back. It was sticky, coated in blood, and Claire could feel her heart plummet into the pit of her stomach. “You’re okay-“ she whispered instead, holding onto that belief when they continued crawling. It was like a maze of debris and purses left behind, shoes, knocked over tables and brief encounters with other terrified people. Nothing in there made it seem like there even was a way out, and every time she thought she heard someone yell that they should follow their voice, it came from a new direction… Hope was starting to slip away. Fast.
But then Anna spoke up and redirected her attention. Once she saw it, it was impossible not to see it anymore. The light in the distance, the breeze breaking through the cloud of smoke in front of them. “Oh my God-“ her voice was barely there, raspy and itchy in her throat but Claire didn’t feel it- all she saw was that one flicker of light. They were so close now- she could feel it. Pushing up onto her knees again, scraping through the broken glass and debris, she reached out for Anna’s hand just as she heard the loud crunch filter through the tent, vibrating under her knees. There was a faint touch of their fingertips before Claire pulled back her hand and covered her head with her arms on instinct. She screamed as loudly as she could, screamed until her lungs gave out and no sound escaped anymore. She could still hear Anna call out for her, but the flicker of light was gone now- replaced by hovering flames that slowly crept closer.
“Anna-“ Claire cried out, looking over her shoulder at the sea of flames behind her. She was trapped- no longer by the tent and the smoke, but by the flames. Angry flames licked at the train of her dress. She grabbed the material and pulled it up, choking the flames with her hands before they spread. “Anna-“ she called out again, her voice trembling but forceful enough to be heard through the flames. “Stay where you are!” She begged, “Everything is going to be okay- it’s going to be fine- I’m okay…” She wanted to believe it more than ever, but the heat was unbearable, the smoke suffocating and what remained of the tent groaned loudly every couple of seconds, threatening to collapse above her. “Oh God-“ she whispered and cried into the palm of her hand. There was no way out now. “Anna!” She yelled again, newfound strength being put to the only use she could think of now-
