I smell of pain, fear, and regret. The scent is stronger than the dirt, sweat, and tears that have graced my body. I sit alone with her in darkness, in the corner of her room. The only thing I see is the glare from the street lights outside through the opened window. The only thing I feel is the wind, fractured spirits, and the closeness of her body. I’m holding her close to me, as if she was embedded in me. I’m trying to suppress her shakes and aches. Gasping and taking advantage of all the fresh air that’s now available to her. In return, her arms are tightly wrapped around me with her head at my heart. I’m unable to count how many times I apologized to her. She should be upset with me, she should hate me, but all she wants to do is be close to me. I close my eyes to trial my thoughts. Flashbacks are letting tears creep down my face as the knot in my throat begins to form again. I’m feeling as if the air is being taken away from me as I remember the look in her eyes. I wonder if her fears were equivalent to mine. I’m silently trying to erase a memory I know I’ll never forget.

Friday, May 24, 2014 in Mr. C’s history class. I personally don’t care for history. It’s a good thing that European history is mildly interesting, or I’ll never pass the 12th grade. Carelessly drowning out the speech Mr. C was giving, I wrote out about five haiku’s. Mr. C must have noticed how much I cared about what was saying because, I heard him say, “I suggest you know what to do then Miles. Correct?” His chill voice is never hard to miss, it blew right past me. Seeing I didn’t acknowledge his existence, Mr. C tapped on my desk and said “Miss DeHaven.” I looked perplexed as my attention drew back where it originally should have been in the first place. Mr. C gave me an unpleased look. As if I was one of his little children who stole from the cookie jar. “I’m sorry Mr. C. So what are we doing?” I said in a sweet, sarcastic manner. Mr. C spoke in his rude tone, “Funny how you should ask Miss DeHaven. You’re gonna have to find a partner, and figure it out yourself.”
As I rolled my eyes, I looked to the left and saw my girlfriend smiling at me. Her smile makes my heart flutter. She stands 5’7 with her eyes in the most beautiful shade of brown. Her skin reminds me of silk, so soft and delicate, carrying the shade of sand. Her hair is a dark but noticeable red. She always wears her hair in curls, knowing how much I love how effortlessly they fall down to her back, how they compliment her skin. She’s laid back and content, almost the opposite of me. Her name is as beautiful as she is, Acacia Lord.
I sometimes get jealous of Acacia’s appearance. I’d feel like she’s much more beautiful than I am. I stand 5’5, with my eyes a more rich dark brown. My skin tone is a warm, kind of like milk chocolate but a shade and a half lighter. Instead of free flowing hair, I have burgundy color dreads that run down my back. I also have a nose piercing and a monroe piercing. Maybe it’s my low self esteem that gets to me.

Acacia gave me the “come here” motion with her index finger. I obediently got up from my chair, and pranced over to her presence. Acacia always has this sweet look in her eyes whenever she looks at me. Her gaze makes me melt, I feel like she’s controlling my mind. “You enjoy getting yourself into trouble don’t you?” Acacia said in her soft voice. I shrugged and said “It has its ups and downs. What are we supposed to be doing anyway?” Acacia looked at me and said “You should have been paying attention Miss DeHaven.” in a playful tone. I gave her a piercing stare. A stare you would give someone as if you were telling them that you don’t have time for games. Acacia giggled and said “Oh lighten up! It’s a research project. You’re supposed to cover something that wasn’t covered in class. You’re always full of ideas, so I thought I’d leave this up to you.”

My mind drew blank for the first few moments of thought. I had to go deep in my brain to conjure something that can guarantee a passing grade. I routinely tapped my fingers on my lips, saying no to every idea that came to me. “Oh my God! I know what we can do!” I said excitedly. “There’s this unmapped town a little ways away from Philly called Centralia.” Before I could continue, Acacia’s face drew concerning, “Why is it unmapped?” she said hesitantly. I continued, “It’s unmapped because, there’s an underground coal fire burning for 1,000 years now. Nobody thought to put it out because the residents there assumed it would go out on its own, and underground fires were uncommon. Most people left because of the gasses, and occasionally holes would just open up in the ground, but there’s still a few people who refuse to leave.”

Acacia’s face never looked so disapproving. “So you’re trying to kill us via poisonous gas?” she said in a dark tone. I got uncertain about my idea, knowing she was going to say no and stick with it. I said carefully, “Acacia, that’s not it. Since there are people who refuse to leave, I figured we just ask them a few questions. It won’t even take an hour. Those people have nothing to do, nowhere to go. At the most, we’ll make their day mildly interesting.” Acacia’s face grew stern. “Miles, no.” she said strictly. I should’ve known what type of battle I was going to be up against. Acacia is the type of person who rarely changes her mind. “Acacia, do you want an A or not?” I said as if she had no choice. “Miles, do you want to die or not?” Acacia said as a smart remark. “Random holes opening up, poisonous gas, people who’ve possibly haven’t seen anyone but themselves in years? I really don’t like this idea.” Acacia said as her face became uneasy. She looked into my eyes, and I got up from the desk to sit on her lap. I put her head to my shoulder and said softly “Everything is going to be okay. I’ll protect you as if my life depended on it. You have nothing to worry about, I promise.” I took Acacia’s head off my shoulder, looked in her beautiful brown eyes, and kissed her forehead. She smiled and said “Okay, I’m with you.”

Saturday afternoon, Acacia and I drove out to Centralia. We decided to go the next day since it was Friday, and we don’t like to waste time. Getting there took way longer than anticipated. Acacia and I got lost and didn’t get to Centralia until the sky was its pretty mixture of orange and purple to indicate that the sun was setting, and nightfall is near. Before I got out the car, Acacia quickly grabbed my arm, gave me a serious look, and said “I do not expect to be here for more than 45 minutes. If the sky gets to the point where I can’t see my feet anymore and we’re still in this death trap, I’m leaving you behind. Understood?” I gave Acacia a strange look and said “Okay mom.” and got out the car.

Acacia followed me as I started to walk down a dirt road. I ceased to hear Acacia’s footsteps behind me, and I heard her call my name. I turned around and started to walk back to Acacia and the sign she was standing in front of. Acacia’s face looked un-amused. Like she knew what to expect as she read “Danger underground mine fire. Walking or driving in this area could result in serious injury or death. Dangerous gases are present. Ground is prone to sudden collapse.” I looked at Acacia, and her face told me that she was already prepared to leave. I held out my hand and calmly said to her “Take my hand, hold it tight, and don't let it go unless we're standing still. Don’t run, skip, dance, jump, or do anything that plays Russian roulette with gravity. We'll walk slowly and on guard. If you fall, I fall with you and vice versa okay?” Acacia looked at my hand and slowly took it. I moved her hair from her face and said “ I'll try to get you out of here, and back to your Lifetime Movie Network soon. I promise.”

As Acacia and I continued down the dirt road, I could see where holes have opened up on the ground. I looked to the left and saw broken trees and what looked like smoke coming from the ground. I looked to the right and saw a rolling hill with even more smoke coming out of a hole the size of a small crater. It wasn't that long before an unbearable smell came before me. The only scent’s I could pick out were a gas stove, and rotten bodies. “What in God’s name is assaulting my nostrils?” I said dramatically. “Oh gee, I don't know. Maybe it’s the same smell that’s going to kill us later on.” Acacia said sarcastically. I ignored Acacia’s remark as we came upon a house. It was old and brown, looked like it could collapse at any given moment. “Do you think anyone is there?” I asked Acacia. She looked at the house in disgust and said “Why would anyone want to live there? It looks like it’s infested with mold and rats.”
I sighed as I let go of Acacia, and went to knock on the door. As the door opened, a man appeared behind it. He looked like a washed up, pathetic Santa Claus. The man’s creepy stare went from me to Acacia. Before he could say anything, I abruptly said “ We're students researching for a project about the town you live in, Centralia. I was wondering if you know of the history Centralia has.” The man slowly said “My name is Quil. I have a few newspapers about Centralia, I'll be happy to lend them to you. Excuse me for a moment.” Quil disappeared into the darkness of his house.
Acacia and I waited for 10 minutes as the sky was turning dark blue, and Acacia’s patience was decreasing rapidly. “My feet are disappearing.” She said impatiently. I then heard the sound of a loading shotgun. “Did you hear that?” I whispered to Acacia. “Hear what?” she whispered back. I started to back up slowly then a loud bang rang in my ears. Everything felt as if it went in slow motion as I heard the glass from the window break, Acacia’s scream, and I felt the bullet’s wind go across my face. I grabbed Acacia’s hand and ran like it was my last day to be alive. “I told you this was a bad idea! Why can't you ever listen to me?” Acacia clamored. “Just shut up and run!” I yelled back at her.
Acacia and I were almost to the car before I violently fell onto the ground. I heard faint screams behind me, and then I noticed Acacia’s hand was no longer in mine. I looked behind me and saw a new hole had formed into the ground. I got up and sprinted to the hole fearing the worse. “Acacia?” I cried into the hole. “Miles!” Acacia screamed. I looked down within the smoke and saw her face damped with dirt and tears. Her eyes screeched the fear her mouth could not. She was hanging on an edge an arm’s length away. I got on the ground and slowly reached my arms down into the hole and yelled “Acacia, I need you to extend one of your arms to me so I can grab you.” One part of the edge broke off. Acacia screamed as she was now hanging from her right hand. “I can't, I can't!” Acacia’s voice shook with fear as tears crawled down her face. “Yes you can!” I demanded “I made promises to you I intend on keeping. You will get home, you will watch Lifetime, and I will protect you. My life depends on it. We have no time to waste, please don't let me break my promises.” Acacia slowly reached up her left arm. I quickly grabbed it and pulled her until she was able to climb out the hole. Another gunshot was fired as Acacia and I raced the rest of the way to the car. We got in and sped off into the night.
It’s 4:47 AM on Sunday May 26th, 2014. I sit alone on a chair, in the pale darkness of Acacia’s room. The window still lies open as the wind and light creep in to kiss my skin. I get up and walk over to Acacia sleeping soundly in her bed. I whisper to her, “ I'm so sorry. I thank God that he decided to keep you with me.” I kiss Acacia’s cheek, climb out the window, and walk home.