Hard Life

First

Just a warning people....FEELS AHEAD

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8 year old Leo

The firefighter bursts out of the house, as the remaining roof caves in.

The torn apart house burns, flames licking the neighbors houses.

A young boy, of nine years, is held in the firefighters arms.

Bawling his eyes out and kicking.

The man sets the crying boy down in an ambulance.

The man kneels so he's head level with the boy, and takes off his firefighter mask.

"What happened?"

The small Latino boy hiccups and says quickly,"..Was stupid, started fire, mommy got stuck in her room, I tired to get her out but the door was stuck...I..I."

The boy stops and starts crying again.

The man glances at the woman who puts a red blanket over the boy, then puts his attention back on the sobbing child.

"What-"

"It came out of my hands!" The boy cried out, by now more and more people were staring at him. "The fire it came out of my hands. It did! It did."

The man looks unsurely at the boy. A police office comes next to the man and asks the boy,"Do you know what matches are? Like these."

The police man takes put a small box of matches from his jacket and the Latino nods.

"Y-yes, but mommy said never to play with it."

The police wiped tears off the boys cheeks. "But you did anyway didn't you?"

The boy keeps shaking his head. "No! W-well, sometimes. I never let mommy see though! But the fire came from my hands."

He drew up the red blanket so it covered his face.

With a pat on the boys shoulder, the police man turns to the reporters with cameras that appeared.

He clears he throat and addresses the people.

"It was accidental. The boy played with matches and accidentally started a fire. His mother was stuck in the house, and the boy couldn't get her out. Its a miracle the boy made it out with no burns. His mother didn't make it. That's all."

The boy stood up and half yelled half cried out,"It came from my hands, why won't anyone believe me? It came from my hands I swear it!"

The reporters recorded him for a while, before moving on.

The firefighter runs off to join his friends to extinguish the fire.

The small Latino boy sits alone, crying, on the edge of the ambulance.

~*~

Five hours later, in the night.

A firefighter, maybe in his 20's, stands next to a short boy, no less than 9 years old.

The man looks down at the boy.

"What's your name?"

"Leo." The Latino said, tear stains on his cheeks, but no longer crying.

"Leo Valdez." A voice says, and the man and boy both look toward it.

Coming down from the police station steps, is a woman. And old woman, with a fierce look about her.

She stops in front of them and asks the boy. "I talked to the police. They said you started the fire that killed my beloved sister-"

"Tía? Is that you?" Leo says with little hope.

The woman glares at the small boy, distinguishing any hope Leo had.

"Don't interrupt me when I'm speaking." The woman says sharply.

"Was it you that-"

"It was all an accident Tía. Fire just came out of my hands-"

The woman smacked Leo in the face with so much force, the boy fell back.

"Hey." The man said, obviously intimated by this lady. "There's no need for that."

The woman turns to the man and challenges him.

"This," She gestures to Leo who has a red hand shape on his cheek. "Is a murderer. Do you not think murderers should be punished? What if someone burned your own mother at the stake. Wouldn't you want justice?"

The man glances at Leo who is standing up and replys,"Of course but-"

"Well then this little demon, deserves everything he's going to get." The woman grabs the frightened boys arm.

She smiles at the man, and pulls Leo to her. "So yes I'd be willing to keep him. If for only just a week."

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Okay people...tell me how it was. Um, yeah.

This is a taste of how this book will be...sad.

Adios people