LL exclaimed. âYou must have been so scared.â
Nora thought back to that morning. Oddly, she didnât recall feeling fear. Her parents were so mellow about it all. Her dad said theyâd be fine, and she believed him. âWe could hear the fire trucks outside. And the voices in the hall.â Memories flooded over Nora. âI never thought that we might die. Or if I thought it, I never let the idea stick.â
No one asked any questions, so Nora went on. âTheworst part was the heat. And the smoke.â She shivered. âIt was hard to breathe.â
â Now I have goose bumps.â LL rubbed her arms.
Caitlin put her arm around Nora. âSo the fire department broke down the door?â
âYes,â Nora said. She was actually relieved to be telling her new friends about that day. âThey used axes to knock it down, then burst in with water hoses.â She closed her eyes as she recalled the strong woman who had picked her up and carried her down the apartment stairs. Nora had rested her head against the womanâs shoulder. Sheâd smelled like rose water perfume. It was a million times better than the smoke, and Nora hadnât wanted to be set down when they reached the sidewalk.
âMy mom, Dad, me, and Lucas, we were all put in an ambulance and given oxygen.â Nora cupped her hand over her mouth to show them what it was like. She could hear them all inhale as if reliving the experience alongside her.
âI should write this down for you,â Aleah said. âYou might want to write a book someday.â
âI donât think Iâll ever forget the details of that night,â Nora told her, then added, âYou can write thebook about me, if you want.â She considered the project and said, âI might draw the pictures for it.â After she took art classes, of course. If gymnastics wasnât a perfect fit, art classes could be next on the list of things to try.
Having spent so much time with Caitlin and her friends that night, Nora was now even more determined to find something she was really, really good at.
âWhat happened next?â LL asked.
Nora started to spill all about her parents and their financial cutbacks and school, but suddenly stopped herself. âCan I use your computer for a sec?â Nora asked Aleah.
âSure,â Aleah said. She turned the laptop toward Nora.
Nora stared down at the keyboard. How long had it been since her computer had fried in the fire? Two months, but it felt like forever since sheâd typed. Nora ran her fingers across the keys. They made little clicky noises. It was all she could do to stay focused on what she wanted to show her friends instead of taking a few minutes extra to check her e-mail account. Though who would e-mail her? Not like Hallie and Lindsay were sending messages.
Sheâd love to play a game. There were so many sheâd liked before her parents let the Internet go.
Nora used to like surfing around websites. Reading strange facts, movie reviews, the latest fashion, watching funny videos. She set her hands flat over Aleahâs keyboard and wondered what had happened on all her favorite TV shows.
It was amazing how much sheâd taken her computer and the Internet for granted when sheâd had them, and how much she missed it now that she didnât.
Nora sighed.
And focused.
She typed information about the fire into the search bar.
Only one video popped up.
âHere.â Nora turned the screen so that everyone could see. And then she pressed play.
The blond reporter, the one who had been the first to arrive on the scene, was standing on the sidewalk below Noraâs window, holding a microphone in her hand.
Nora sat up straighter. Sheâd never actually seen the news report. This first part was what sheâd seen through her window.
A few minutes in, Mrs. Daugherty came out onto the sidewalk in her pink robe and