You dashed out of the building as the flames nipped at the hair on the back of your neck.
The unbearable heat clashed with the ringing in your ears; the alarms sang a siren’s song through the hallways as you ran, which followed you out the front doors.
Congregations of people surrounded you as they frantically asked questions. The soot smeared across your cheeks and the blaze of fear in your eyes said it all; things weren’t ending well.
He started it, to be fair. If he had just stopped pestering, and allowed you to explain your side, the fighting would’ve never happened. Sparks would’ve never flown. Flames would’ve never erupted.
Your life and sanity over the others in the building wasn’t worth it. These people needed to be away from someone as dangerous as you.
Before questions could be asked any more, you took off in a dash for the forest. Lights of red and blue shone onto the trees, the sirens of your future captors grew louder and louder as they gained ground on your footing. You were wasting time.
You pumped your legs even harder, feeling the ground fly past your feet at feather-like touch. It was as if your feet were floating above the ground, just barely grazing the gravel and dirt below you to create momentum.
Your heart thrusted against your chest with every step you took, the adrenaline of the situation overtaking any fear, anger, or distress you were once feeling. Emotions were gone.
His face flashed through your mind once again. His stupid brown eyes, that cocky smirk when he knows he’s right, his raven-brown hair. That stupid attitude he gets when he argues with you. As much as you hate it, and as much as you would love to punch it out of his face, you guiltily admit to yourself how much you adore it.
Maybe you’re going crazy.
Your retaliation to his cockiness and the yelling was to light a fire over his radiator. Your response to his argument was to burn your history together. There is no maybe.
You are crazy.
You destroyed lives that never belonged to you. You let your emotions get too out of hand. You chose to make a decision that changed the lives of so many people.
You potentially murdered him, left him engulfed in the smoke and fire of your memories.
You’re crazy, and the world is after you now.
Congratulations. You did amazing. Time to learn how to survive.
Sierra Auman is an English major at the Penn State University Park campus! “When I’m not studying or in class, I am writing. Whether it be answering prompts out of a prompt book or just writing drabbles such as this, my brain is always creating a new story! My goals after college are to be a published author.”
Follow Sierra on Instagram: @sierraaumanpsu