I could remember that awful night all too well. It started out in my pale blue bed, where I layed restlessly. Something didn’t feel quite right, I couldn’t fall asleep because of it. But what was wrong? Everything seemed to be peaceful, I was so comfortable under my fluffy duvet, the pillow under my head was soft. I was starting to consider going back to sleep, but then I heard the scream.
It was the most horrible scream I’d ever heard, it was full of fear, a sound of terror. At first I thought it might just be my imagination, my dreams breaking through reality, and I heard it again.
“AHHHHHHHHH!!!” It was shrill. I heard muffled yelling from outside.
“HURRY, GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!”
“HON? GO TO THE NEIGHBORS, USE THEIR PHONE AND CALL THE FIRE DEPARTMENT! NOW!”
“Did you hear that, Jo?” I heard Mom ask Dad from their bedroom, “It came from across the street!”
There was another scream of distress.
“Jo, what’s happening? We need to go outside, now!” more footsteps.
The hall light got turned on and a dim yellow flooded my room. My parents had heard it too. This was real. I flung myself out of bed and ran to my bedroom door. Sprinted down the cold wood floor of the hallway, Oh... my... GOD!” my mom’s scared whisper turned into a shriek! I flew through our foyer and burst through the open doorway.
That was when it made sense. That was how it all started. I stared at the little ranch house across the street. Lily’s house, the sweet residence of the Mayfield family, was lost in flames.
I had to be dreaming, dreaming the worst dream imaginable, but I knew that I wasn’t. It was real life, I was wide awake. I knew something was wrong, something was horrible. Lily, Mrs and Mr Mayfield. Are they hurt? Lily. I started to hyperventilate, Lily. My best friend... what would I do without her. What if... I stopped myself from thinking it, Lily would be fine. But I couldn’t be sure yet. I looked closer at the property, looking for people. Where is she? Where is she? I kept thinking, desperately. Then I saw her open her bedroom window and leap out. She stumbled around clumsily running toward the street, coughing from the smoke. She crossed the road trembling, her family following 10 or 12 feet behind her. There were tears in all of their blue eyes, illuminated by the orange flames that flickered behind them.
I heard the fire sirens coming from the east, getting closer, louder, but I could tell, it would be too late, the house could not be saved. Lily and her parents were coming up to us now. Lily ran up to me, “Alysse! Why me?” she cried, “why me?” we both burst into uncontrollable tears and sobs.

That was when it all fell apart, for Lily, and for me. But here I am now, behind the place that will enable her family to keep going, if only that could really be true, I thought. Lily was a family girl, one who had never taken anything for granted. She was more than grateful for the refuge of the shelter. But it killed her to stay there, it only made the situation more real, too real, for everything to be OK.

I stared at the shelter. A dying building with peeling paint, dirty windows, and moldy corners stood across the street from me. But I couldn’t think of that. I was here to run. Ugh, how come the shelter has to be across the street from the track, of all places? Now every time I wanted to practice for a meet, the images would come flashing back to my mind. I would be reminded of what had happened. I would never get away from that disaster, ever.

I wondered what I would do if Lily came. I’ll have to make her laugh. She needs to be happy. It’s what we both want, isn’t it... why do so many of the things we want have to be so close to impossible? I needed to thing about training, though, so I pressed the GO button on my stopwatch and took off, down the track lane. I would do a mile. So I ran.

And I ran.

And I ran.

And I ran some more.
I flew forward, charging through the air, my heart was hammering inside my chest at at a rate of one hundred miles an hour. Right now, everything was perfect, the sky, the world, the track, me. But I wasn’t worried about any of that. Perfect wasn’t my focus right now. I had to beat my one mile time. 7:57 just wasn’t fast enough, there were still a few people faster than me. Lily and Sarrie were the top two girls in 6th grade. That meant that there was room for improvement, and as long as that was true, I would keep trying to do better.

I was halfway done. I looked at my watch, it read



03:04 (blink) 03:05 (blink) 03:06
Second after second. If I could keep up this pace, I would be able to beat my last time... by a lot.

I leaned my head down and stared at my racing feet, as I bolted ahead. A bead of sweat rolled down my cheek a landed on the corner of my mouth. I felt like I was flying.

Flying.

Flying.

Flying

My legs were my wings and the track was my sky. Left leg. Right leg. Left leg. Right leg. Again and again and again as my aching feet pulled me forward across the ground. The bead of sweat, unlodged by the wind I was creating, slipped down and off of my chin. I kept running, leaving the droplet of water behind me. It stayed there on the red clay, like a reminder that I was a runner, so fast, so agile, so determined, that I would beat my best score. My feet kept their alternating beat steady and fast, as I made the next heaving lap. One lap left, I could do this, I could feel it deep within me. I would do this, I had to.
I dug into the brisk thin summer afternoon air as the sun set behind me. More perfect, more that did not matter at this moment. I could not get distracted, my one and only focus was this last lap of the mile. I drove myself on. Turning the loop at the end of the track, I caught a glimpse of something, someone, slumped at the other end of the field. Her hands on her hips, she drew heavy tired breaths as she squinted directly at me. I knew who it must be. It would be Lily, figuring out my identity as I was figuring out hers. I could feel her eyes on me, they weren't accusing eyes like I might have thought, though, they were confused eyes, caring eyes, tired eyes, sad eyes, burning eyes. They were full of emotion. The look in those dark eyes spread across the pale face. Deep thoughts, I could tell, were filling this person’s head at that moment. What is troubling this person? I thought as I ran, what could have ever happened to someone, that would make them think and feel so deeply?
I then knew what thoughts were in her head, what events had put that troubled look on her desperate face. I could tell, she was crying inside, weeping, no word could describe the stress, the anger, the heartbreak, sorrow, tears, despair, longing, the sadness that swelled up inside her.
But the fire that ruined her life, almost ruined me as well. I could feel what others felt, Lily more than anyone else I knew. That is what made us such good friends, I understood every detail of her intricate life. I could tell before anyone else when she was happy or sad, when something had happened and if it would change her for better or for worse. I couldn’t stand to see her that way, to realize that she hadn’t smiled since the disaster. It killed me. Whenever she used to be around me, my cheerfulness became her cheerfulness. I’d always been an overly happy person, so I tried to give some of that happiness to others, whether they needed it or not. That’s what mattered to me. I hated it when people were sad. When others were sad, it made me sad. When I was sad, I was not happy-go-lucky Alysse, I was just Alysse. Most people would say that just Alysse is OK, I’d like to disagree, thank you very much.
I kept going, even more desperate for the finish line, I went impossibly faster. I needed to be with Lily, needed to make her happy, or maybe it was vice versa, maybe she needed to be with me, needed me to make her happy. It must have been both.
I could see every little detail of her emotionally stressed body. I knew right away that she had been running to escape the shelter she hated so much. She needed to make it disappear, at least for a while.
Closer and closer to the white line that marked my finish, Closer and closer to the friend that needed me.
Left.
Right.
Left.
Right.
Left.
Right.
5...4...3...2...1...0.

I finished my mile, jabbing the STOP button on my watch. I didn’t even care to look at my time. I could look at that later. I slowed to a jog, getting out a, “Hey! Jaguar,it’s me! ‘Sup, girlie?” between breaths, and did a little skip-hop landing in front of my desperate friend.Trying to keep my voice light and bright, I said, “So, Flash, what’ve you been up to? Certainly not running!” I forced out what seemed like a joyful laugh. It hurt me so much to see her like this, it made me want to cry also.

Lily sighed and started to jog a little, so I followed her, “Mmmmm...” Her voice disappeared gradually, like an airplane, It came and went, fading off into the distance. I could tell her mind had went straight to the shelter, the fire, everything that had gone wrong in the past week and a half. It really did break my heart.
This time instead of trying to make everything happy and nice, I felt like I needed to show my best friend that I really did understand how she felt. I needed to be there for her, not just stand there and try to make her smile and laugh. That was not what she needed right now, I could tell.
I went straight forward this time, “I know. I’m really sorry, I wish there was something I could do to help you guys out, you know, while you’re staying there...” This time it was my voice that disappeared, in and out like a plane, as I took a sorrowful glance toward the shelter, all dirty and falling apart. i wasn’t used to talking from the heart, especially about sad things, I would never be great at that kind of talk, but I had to give it by very best try.

“You’re too nice. I really don’t deserve to have you as a best friend. You don’t need to do anything, we’re fine for now” Lily tried to reassure me, but it wasn’t true. She was not fine, she was nowhere close to fine. But she would just keep trying, “You know, I can run and run on and on forever, but I can’t outrun this, can I? I wish I could.”

I knew what she meant. She wished that she could just keep on running and be able to get away from all this. I needed to at least make an attempt at a joke. I wanted Lily to be happy. It was up to me to get her at least a little cheered up, “OK, Miss Swish,” she gave a little laugh, but no smile, at my nickname. she’d always loved it when I came up with a new one for her. This could work, I might be able to get a little grin out of her... maybe, “so now you’re telling me you want to have a race against some fire and a rundown building? Because last time I checked, buildings and fires can’t run. So I’m pretty sure you’ll win that one.”

“I wish” she shrugged as she told me those two sarcastic little words. “You know how to make me laugh more than anyone else. Even when I’m in a mood!”

Thank goodness! That was the Lily I knew. The one that always told me I was too good for her. Never! I thought. She deserved me so much more than she knew.

I didn’t respond, and so both of us were quiet. It was alright though. My joke did the trick. I could feel that she was actually happy now. I looked over at her and I couldn’t believe what I saw, a smile, not just a grin, but a full-blown smile. More than I’d ever have expected for her. She was really smiled.

Smiled.

Smiled.

Smiled.
I could tell that she felt a new hope that she hadn’t felt before, like everything might just work out alright.

Smiled.
I realized in bed that night, all tangled up in my pale blue sheets, that maybe we could forget. That everything could turn out alright, and I was hoping Lily did too. Maybe we weren’t lost in flames after all. Maybe we could emerge from the fire of life. We may have some scars and burns, but those will fade with time. I knew that even if Lily’s house was, her heart would never be. Never be lost in flames.