Full Circle Chapter 2
Jun Ki drove as fast as he possibly could. Somehow the daycare had caught fire, and some of the kids were still inside. Finally he pulled into the parking lot, tires screaming from abuse. He didn’t even bother with turning the thing off, he jumped out of the car and ran to where a large group of children were standing behind the fire trucks.
"Chin Ho?" he called, looking for his son. Spying one of Chin Ho’s playmates, he pulled the boy aside.
"Joo-Chan, where’s Chin Ho? Did he make it out?" Jun Ki asked, frantic.
"N-no, I think he’s still inside." The boy coughed. In an instant Jun Ki was running through the first open door he saw. The fire was much worse inside the building than he had first thought. Thick, heavy smoke stung his eyes and filled his lungs. Everywhere he turned there were flames. He searched the lunchroom and the playroom, but both were empty. By the time he got to the craft room he was coughing nonstop.
"Chin-Ho! Where are you?" he shouted again.
"Dad!"
Jun Ki spun around. Chin-Ho was maneuvering carefully around burning tables and shelves, cautious of the little girl he was carrying on his back. Both of their faces were smudged with soot, and the girl was coughing heavily.
"Dad, she can’t breathe. We gotta get her out of here!" Yelled Chin-Ho. Jun Ki scooped up both children without a moment’s hesitation and ran. But just before they got to the doorway, fire exploded out of a nearby room, knocking them all to the floor. Jun Ki felt his leg snap painfully as he hit the ground. The children sat up slowly, making sure they weren’t hurt. Chin-Ho had a long cut across his cheek and his hair was singed at the ends, but other than that he seemed to be alright. The little girl was best off out of the three with just a few bruises. Jun Ki grabbed his son’s hand and looked him straight in the eye.
"Chin-Ho, you listen to me right now. I want you to take her hand, and the both of you run until you get to the exit. Don’t stop for any reason, understand?" he told him.
"But Dad, you’re coming with us, right?" the boy asked, tearful. Jun Ki offered his son one last smile.
"Don’t worry about me, I’ll be right behind you." he reassured, knowing in his heart that he was lying. "Now go!" He ordered. The children took off running. Using the wall to support himself, Jun Ki slowly got to his feet and started walking. Every second he stood put more pressure on his injured leg. Every step he took was excruciating, but he kept going. Hearing a discouraging cracking sound, he threw himself forward on the ground, and a huge chunk of the ceiling crashed into the ground where he had stood just a second before. More pieces of the ceiling were caving in everywhere. Jun Ki knew he didn’t have the strength to get up and walk again, so he didn’t even try. Looking up, the last thing he saw was the two children running out the open door at the end of the hallway. Then the entire building collapsed, and everything went dark.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr. Park appeared in the doorway with a cup of tea, which he handed to Isabelle. She took it gratefully, and when the warm drink had calmed her down, she settled back into the covers and was soon fast asleep.
Isabelle sat up, screaming. The hallway light came on and the door flew open to reveal a frantic Park Chung Ae. She took one look at the distressed woman and was at her side in an instant, enveloping Isabelle in a tight hug. Isabelle collapsed into the older woman’s embrace, sobbing uncontrollably.
"Shhh, it was just a dream honey. That’s all it was. Just a dream." Chung Ae whispered, softly rocking the crying girl back and forth.
"I-I saw them… in the fire!... a-and he was hurt, he c-couldn’t get out! And the building..... oh my God Umma! It- it CRUSHED him.. and now…. h-he’s gone!....." She wailed.