Panic. Fear. Tension. The will to survive. Those were all the emotions in the air as the hotel erupted into flames. Everyone got down on the floor, crawling, trying to find the closest emergency exit. Extreme heat and blackness filled the room. Andrew shut his eyes tightly, fighting a wave of nervousness and anxiety. It was just like all those years ago.

Blood pumped furiously through his veins, and his heart raced a mile a minute. Flames dance all around him, causing beams to fall. And the others, their ear-piercing screams were muffled by the deafening roar of fire.

He kept his head low, already feeling the fumes of smoke enter his lungs. Even after such a long time...he still remembered what had happened to him long ago. He was feeling those very same sensations now. Andrew's eye opened, and he saw nothing but blackness.

Perspiration trickled down his forehead, clung to his neck and back. If only he had been aware of the emergency exit's location. He didn't want to risk moving around and wandering aimlessly.

How could this have happened? He was willing to bet that no one imagined The Atlantic being set on fire. The arsonist randomly chose hotels that would go up in flames. The past six didn't have any connections to each other. At least, according to the police department. The arsonist sure knew how to scare people. He picked the one hotel with a big crowd to be lucky number seven.

Several thoughts filtered through his brain. Where's Tina? And...Meliza? He coughed, attempting to see through the black haze of smoke. D*mm*t...I hope they're okay...
 
 

Meliza had never run so fast in her entire life. As soon as she heard sirens wailing, she looked up and saw a large dark cloud in the sky, and she had begun running to the scene. The police and fire department had set up a yellow tape all around The Atlantic.

She glanced at her watch, noting that the tournament had been over just minutes before the hotel caught on fire. She had slipped in and out, unnoticed, and watched Tina with pride as her apprentice whipped the pants off the other gamblers.

Meliza pushed her way through the crowd, who watched in despair. She swallowed a lump in her throat. Tina...Drew...

She turned away from the scene and wandered around near the paramedics, searching, hoping that her two companions had been rescued. Seeing one in a blue and white uniform, she walked up to him, snatching his arm.

The paramedic looked up in surprise.

"Excuse me...I'm looking for some friends of mine. I-"

"The firemen are still going in and out...there's a lot of people in that hotel, ma'am...they're working as fast as they can to get everyone out. We're taking some of these people to Atlantic Memorial and John Brown Hospital. If you don't find your friends now, call those places, and they could tell you if they're there or not," he told her in a calm voice, his blue eyes sympathetic.

Meliza nodded. "Thank you."

As the paramedic left to assist his team, she turned to look back at the hotel, half of it already up in flames. Feeling very cold all of a sudden, Meliza hugged herself tightly.

Tina smiled weakly as the paramedic told her that she was free to leave. Mere minutes after the fire started, the fire department came. She had crawled to an exit door, but had been unable to open it. A fireman had opened the door from outside immediately, and she had gotten out much earlier than everyone else.

Wool blanket wrapped around her, she wandered around, occasionally looking at the flames that the firemen were still attempting to douse. A lone figure got her attention. The blouse, skirt, the hair was unmistakable. Tina walked forward.

"Meliza?"

The figure turned, her eyes widening with shock. "Tina!"

Tina dashed towards her, throwing her arms around the other woman. "Thank goodness you're okay!"

"Are you hurt? Is everything okay?" Meliza asked urgently, returning the hug.

Tina pulled away, her eyes watery. "No...I was just scared...The paramedics told me that I can go home."

"Good."

"Meliza...that is one of the scariest things I've ever been through..." Tina took a deep breath. "How could someone be so cruel...setting it on fire...?"

Meliza patted her shoulders, taking a deep breath. "You're alive, and that's all that counts."

Tina's lower lip trembled. "I...haven't seen Andrew...not since we were in the hotel..."

Fear entered Meliza's brown eyes. "He'll be okay..."

"I hope so..."

The two women turned back to the hotel again. It didn't look like the flames were going to die anytime soon.

"Anyone else left in here?" a fireman asked his colleague.

The other looked around the casino, which was now in ashes and broken pieces of wall, tables...

"Over there."

The first one looked to see a hand and arm sticking out from behind an overturned table. They walked over to see a young man dressed in black pants, dark blue shirt, and black necktie. His chiseled features were dusted with soot and soaking with sweat.

The second one picked him up and quickly ran out of the building. The man seemed almost dead. With a little luck, he might make it...

The paramedics were busy. They were helping those with severe injuries. In a fire, it was every man for himself, even if he ended up hurting someone else to survive. That's the way it was. Meliza and Tina watched with quiet admiration as they did all they could. It seemed that there wasn't enough to accommodate all the patients.

They spotted a fireman carrying a man over his shoulders. "Dave!" he called out.

The paramedic Meliza spoke to earlier, came forward, with a blanket. "We're out of gurneys..." He set the blanket on the ground for the fireman to settle his newest patient on.

Meliza and Tina watched in horror as the fireman set down a familiar figure.

"Drew!" Meliza exclaimed, rushing forward.

Tina held her back. "Meliza, let him do his job..."

Dave reached over to check Andrew's pulse. "He's weak...but alive. Guy probably inhaled too much smoke..." He leaned forward, turning his face away, to feel for breath. "He's not breathing." Quickly, he began searching through a nearby kit. "D*mm*t," he muttered. "Where's that oxygen mask?"

"Dave!" another fireman called out, holding a woman whose head was bleeding.

Dave took a deep breath. Just another day in the life of a paramedic...

The Asian woman who stopped him earlier walked up. "I'm certified in CPR. Help her and I'll work on him." Without even asking for his approval, she positioned the down man's head correctly and began administering mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

"Ma'am, I-" he protested.

"She's his girlfriend," Tina explained.

Dave nodded and accepted the woman with the head injury.

Tina watched, her hands clasped, as Meliza tried to restore Andrew's breathing.

"He's not responding..." Meliza muttered, her fingers checking his carotid artery. "Wake up, Drew..."

"Is he alive?" Tina asked.

"Barely," Meliza responded between breaths. She tipped his head back again to open his airway before continuing.

Tina closed her eyes tightly. "Come on, Meliza..."

Meliza was on the verge of tears. She knew what she was doing, but it wasn't working.

Tina could see the sheen of moisture in her eyes. "Keep going."

Meliza released air into Andrew's mouth and airway, seeing his chest expand. He coughed slightly. She sat up as he continued to cough. The last two minutes seemed like ten.

Andrew's eyes opened, blank as he stared at the night sky.

"Andrew?" Tina spoke up.

He turned his head slightly, seeing the two, Tina's face streaked with tears of joy, Meliza's tears threatening to spill. "Hey..." his voice cracked.

"Are you all right?" Meliza asked urgently.

Not trusting his voice, he nodded, taking several deep breaths.

Several other paramedics arrived onto the scene to assist. The one named Dave walked over, greeting the three with a gentle smile.

"Everything okay here?" he asked. At their nods, he spoke up, "Sir, I'm going to need you to come with us to the hospital to check for smoke inhalation. You were in there for a while and unconscious when the firemen found you. Your friends can come along if they like."

"Actu...we'll go to the hospital later," Meliza responded. "I'd like to take Tina back to the hotel so she can rest."

"Fair enough," Dave responded. "We're taking him to Atlantic Memorial, so drop by during visiting hours."

Meliza and Tina thanked him and wished Andrew on his way with promises to come by and visit.

During the ride to the hospital, Dave nodded to Andrew with a wry smile. "You got one h*lluva girlfriend, there, pal."

Andrew smiled briefly beneath his oxygen mask. No kidding...