Wildfire

Bonnie’s Point of view

Shelters are incredibly scary when you have to sleep with all the people who look like the next second you look away you’ll have a slit throat in a second. And all the kids volunteering here look like they would rather be sulking in their room cutting their wrists or they are just killing time till their next nose job.
My parents are on their cellphones with the insurance company right now. My parents said we probably won’t have proper living conditions for about a month. So that means staying in this house for homeless people for a whole miserable month. I look at my watch and see that is time for the volunteers to switch shifts. I saw it on the volunteers’ work time sheet when my parents were registering us. Curious to see who was working now I walked over to the entrance when I froze. Josh McKenzie was standing in the volunteer lobby. That wasn’t so bad except that I had the biggest crush in the world on him. I started running to the other side of the shelter when I tripped on one of the other shelter member’s shoes. After I humiliatingly face planted I felt a pair of arms drag me up from the ground.
“You okay?” He asked then his eyes went big. “Bonnie? When did you start volunteering here?” He asked with genuine surprise. I burst into tears.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“I didn’t volunteer… someone set my house on fire.” I managed to squeak out. I felt two arms wrapped around me.
“I’m so sorry.” WAIT! JOSH MCKENZIE HUGGED MEH!? “So how long have you been staying here for?”
“Four hours… it is still burning.”
“That really sucks.” He started lifting some boxes that contained furniture. “Do you want to help me with these?” He said.
“Sure!” I grabbed on to the other end of the box and we carried it to the kitchen and unpacked it. It was a huge fridge so huge it could probably fit two of me and Josh in and still have room for the groceries. He started plugging things in while I screwed on the handle for the fridge.
“So why would anyone want to set your house on fire?” Josh asked me.
“No clue! I’ve never made any enemies and I don’t think my parents have either but tell you the truth I’m scared for my friend Rachael.”
“Why?”
“Because when I went to her house when the firefighters were still putting out the worst of the fire there was a note on her counter.” Josh looked interested.
“It had a hand painted picture of a house that was on fire and it read: Let the games begin.” Josh looked at me in utter disbelief his green eyes contemplating everything I just said. That is seriously weird Bonnie… Tell her I think she should test her smoke alarms with this psycho on the loose.” He seriously looked like he couldn’t believe it.
“I’ll tell her that.”
“Awesome job Josh!!!!” A really nasal voice says from behind me. I see Tina Adams the REALLY skanky SENIOR in our high school.
“Do you talk about it after hours…Hmm?” She says really suggestively. I’m about to gag when Josh says something to cut the silence.
“Umm... Thanks, but I can’t and you’re a senior so you’re a little too old to be talking to me like this don’t you think?” he asks her.
“FINE.” She huffed away. I started laughing.
“Pedobear!” He whispered to me. This made me laugh harder. He was laughing too.
“That is going to be so awkward at school! She’s either gonna stalk you to death or make your life miserable.” I told him. I looked over at how she was pretending to do her job while making eyes at everything male. My cellphone rang.
“Hello?” The other side bashed out.
"Do you and your friend need another warning? I promise this time I will be taking it more seriously was our little flame show not enough to get it through your friends little head Because If you don’t stop maybe it will be HER house or worse… Your families.” my eyes opened wide as I choked out,
“Who are you? What do you want from me? What did I do?”
“Stupid girl! you’re looking at it.” He snarled.
“Don’t touch my family you creep I’ll call the police!” I heard a sinister laugh on the other end.
“I’d like to see you try…” The other line clicked dead. I quickly dialled *69 to call them back. The operator’s voice greeted me. I’m sorry this phone has been disconnected. I snapped my phone shut.
“Who was that?!” Josh asked me worried.
“I think it was the creep who burned down my house…he told me to stop…”
“Stop what?”
“I don’t know! All he said was that the answer was right in front of me! “Josh’s eyes went big like he had solved the mystery.
“Josh I really don’t know this is all happening so fast that I don’t even know if I’ll be alive tomorrow morning. It scares me.” “I know what will take your mind of this…” I could tell he was thinking hard.
“ICE CREAM!” he shouted and I laughed. "My volunteer shift is done in 15 minutes so after do you want to go for ice cream?” He asked.
“YES!” I shouted. Maybe that would make me forget about the creepy phone call!
“I’ll go get ready.” I rushed off to my bunk area.

Rachael’s P.O.V.
It was already 2 pm. And it felt like it had only been 5 minutes. I stared at the note in my hand. Who sent something like this? Who was really that sadistic? I was thinking all through my head when the tumblers in my brain seemed to unlock. Nick. None of this happened when he came. And he was obsessed with fire. But that person who came into my bedroom had not sounded like Nick at all. But I’m pretty sure that was just a dream! There is no way…right?