Desire Me If You Can-Chapter 90

The fire was much larger than expected. Grayson, who had just gotten off the fire truck, lost his composure in front of the enormous blaze. The other firefighters, though surprised, moved quickly, almost as if it were a routine.

"Get the hose, get the hose first!"

"Where did the fire start? Is there anyone inside?"

"Where's the entry team? Get ready!"

"We need more fire trucks, request reinforcements and contact other stations!"

"Hurry, we need water! Now!"

Shouts and the sound of crackling fire mixed with the rumble of collapsing buildings filled the air. Amidst the chaos, Grayson was focused on one thing: the small house engulfed in red flames.

It was Dein Striker’s house.

The front door that he had kicked open earlier was already charred black, barely visible through the raging fire. What had started as a small fire from burning fallen leaves had escalated, burning down his house and spreading to nearby homes. His house was the third to burn in a neighborhood already scorched by flames. It had been burning for a while now, with the structure of the house already visible through the flames. It was only a matter of time before it collapsed.

It might already be too late.

Grayson thought to himself.

"Still, it's fortunate it's a weekday afternoon, so most of the houses are empty. The people inside have managed to evacuate safely,"

Ezra shouted loudly. Wilkins nodded and added,

"Anyway, let’s prevent it from spreading any further. Hey, you there! Get the water higher!"

The firefighters continued to run in every direction. None of them seemed to realize this was a colleague's house.

Well, it wasn’t like he would bring someone to his house unless they were someone he trusted.

Grayson understood now. He probably knew about Darling just from casual mentions or by seeing the pictures Dein had posted on the cabinet. Even if he did know Darling was inside, trying to rescue him in this situation would be impossible...

Suddenly, the image of Dein throwing himself into the flames to save a stranger’s dog crossed his mind. He couldn’t understand it at the time. In fact, he still didn’t understand it. Even if he were in the same situation now, Grayson would never act like Dein. Never.

But that was Dein’s Darling.

Reason told him clearly. The cat was dead. There was no way it could survive in that fire.

But Darling had survived a similar crisis before. The brave cat had withstood the flames, survived, lost its sight and hearing, but kept on living.

Just until recently.

"Darling."

The image of Dein softly calling out to the cat, gently petting it, vividly resurfaced in his mind. What if Darling were to die?

Despite the heat from the rising flames, his body sweating, Grayson felt a chill run down his spine. He blinked and looked again at the house engulfed in fire.

This is madness.

Grayson bit his lip. He knew it was crazy. Doing something so foolish made no sense.

But...

"Miller, what’s going on?"

Ezra was the first to notice and called out. But Grayson didn’t hear. As if hypnotized, his steps grew faster, and soon he was running.

"Miller, Miller?"

"What’s going on? What happened?"

Other firefighters shouted in surprise from behind, but it was already too late. Grayson had already leaped into the flames.

"Why? Why is he doing this?"

Diandre shouted, shocked. Ezra shook his head, looking flustered.

"I don’t know, he just suddenly ran inside."

"What? Why? How come?"

"I don’t know. We don’t know anything!"

"Dammit, crazy bastard! Why is he causing trouble again?"

The chaos spread as shouts filled the air. A panicked Wilkins quickly regained his composure and gave orders.

"Going in after him is too dangerous; we’ll fight the fire first. I’ll try to contact Miller, but for now, focus on this house and the last one. We can’t let the fire spread further, hurry!"

Shouting forcefully, he quickly noticed his team scattering and pulled out his radio.

"Miller, Miller. Are you there? Miller!"

He called again, but there was no response. Wilkins cursed under his breath and pressed his hand to his forehead. The fire continued to rage, never showing any signs of stopping as it relentlessly soared toward the sky.

"Wow!"

With a deafening roar, the flames surged up right in front of him. Grayson let out a short exclamation and quickly stumbled back. He nearly got caught in the blaze. Though wearing protective gear, being covered by fire is never an easy thing.

He learned for the first time that fire could make such a horrifying sound. He felt a chill in his bones, sighing briefly as he surveyed his surroundings. Everywhere was filled with smoke and ash. Parts of the building were collapsing, and the ground was uneven, making it hard to maintain balance.

Hah, hah. Hah, hah.

Grayson was panting heavily inside his helmet as he hurriedly looked around.

"Darling, Darling! Where are you? Come out, Darling!"

He shouted, but his voice was swallowed by the flames and quickly dissipated. Grayson absentmindedly tried to wipe the sweat from his forehead, but his hand only brushed over his helmet.

This is painful, inside here.

The impulse to run away right then and there was overwhelming. Why? Why am I doing this? It’s just a cat. An old, ugly cat that’s deaf, blind, and won’t live long anyway. No, why should I risk my life for a cat that’s probably already gone in this inferno?

"Darling, damn it, come out!"

Once again, he cursed and shouted. His heavy breathing inside the helmet was starting to hurt his ears. Whether it was due to lack of oxygen or panic, he even felt a slight dizziness.

"Damn it, where are you...?"

Grayson mumbled to himself, cursing again. The living room had already burned down. The cat tower where Darling had once lazily basked in the sun had long collapsed. Having checked the first floor, the second floor was all that was left. The stairs had already collapsed more than halfway, and now Grayson had to risk falling to his death just to get there.

‘Cats hide in times of danger,’ he suddenly recalled a story about cats he had once heard. He had dismissed it, considering he raised dogs and didn’t give much thought to it. He had laughed it off as nonsense. That’s why he thought cats were as useless as birds. They didn’t protect the house or risk their lives for their owner, acting arrogantly. When you called their name, they wouldn’t come, and when there was danger, they would just hide, making things difficult for you.

See? I knew it.

Grayson muttered under his breath, gritting his teeth. Darling? It’s probably Lucifer! He repeated the name of the devil in his head and dashed up the stairs. Behind him, the sound of another part of the burning building collapsing echoed.

"Darling, Darling! Damn it, come out!"

Shouting at the top of his lungs, Grayson searched the second floor. It was a small house with only three rooms, so why was it so hard to find such a small animal?

He lifted a collapsed bookshelf, broke apart a burning built-in wardrobe with an axe, and looked inside, cursing again.

Where are you, damn it!

While scrambling through the wreckage, he threw the mattress out of frustration. The next moment, he froze. He saw a clump of fur hidden between the wall and the mattress. The small body, frozen in place, was undoubtedly the very cat Grayson had been searching for.

"Darling!"

Grayson quickly called out the cat’s name and reached out. But that was a huge mistake. The cat, who had survived the intense heat, was now unable to see or hear, but it vividly remembered the searing heat.

As soon as the mattress was gone, the ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) terrifying heat hit the cat, and it panicked. It suddenly screamed and ran off. Seeing the cat blindly running, Grayson shouted in surprise.

"Darling, no! Stop!"

He rushed after it, but Darling darted away at an incredible speed. The lazy cat who had once lounged on the cat tower now moved with an agility Grayson hadn’t expected. In a state of panic, he lost all composure.

"Darling, stop! Stop there!"

He kept calling out to the cat and chasing after it. Just as Darling seemed to make it down the unstable stairs, it suddenly climbed the wall. Just last year, Grayson remembered how the cat would run up the walls of Dein’s house when it was in a good mood. But now, its joints couldn’t handle it, and running wasn’t easy anymore. In this crisis, the cat’s body remembered the past and leaped at the wall, but reality didn’t cooperate. As Darling stumbled, the ground below collapsed with a loud crash.

"Darling!"

Grayson screamed and lunged towards the cat. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ