Lumi POV
Smoke climbed my throat, thick and choking, turning every breath into a struggle. The house was on fire, flames racing up the walls and ceiling in hungry orange waves that crackled and roared like they were alive. I stumbled through the hallway toward my mom’s room, my bare feet burning on the hot floorboards.
“Mom!” I screamed, voice hoarse from the heat. I could hear her coughing inside, weak and desperate, and I shoved at the burning doorframe with everything I had. The wood gave way in a shower of sparks, but the fire pushed back harder, blistering my hands and forcing me to stumble backward.
I kept going anyway. My lungs screamed for air as I fought my way closer, tears mixing with the soot on my face. If I couldn’t pull her out, then I’d stay with her.
That felt like t
