Gasoline | BxB

-1- Forest Fire

A/N: This is a PREQUEL to my story Messed Up Love (you do NOT NEED to read that one before this one or vice versa), so keep that in mind and enjoy <3

Loud laughter filled the night air with vibrations as a group of friends strolled clumsily through the small set of woods. In their cold hands were clutched cigarettes and cans of beer. They passed a lighter around tentatively to light their cigs.

"I swear Mrs Thorpe is just clueless sometimes, how did she become a teacher?" A boy named Jack said with a chuckle. Henry eyed Jack up nodding along as he inhaled the smoke he'd just puffed out resisting the stinging urge to cough.

"Truly a complete ditz" Sierra replied exchanging a smile with Henry, he and her had been friends since childhood. Her long brown hair swayed in the breeze as a small wind tugged at their clothes.

"Give me the bottle" Henry ordered gesturing for the bottle from the girl beside Sierra called Lucy, reluctantly Lucy handed Henry the glass bottle of vodka she was previously grasping. Henry took a long swig of it gasping as the bitter liquid spilled down his throat, he handed the bottle back smiling cheesily at his friends.

"Lighter?" Sierra requested giving him a small nudge, Henry complied passing her his lighter, she lit her cigarette before handing it back to him and drafting.

"You ever just wanna, burn this forest down?" She joked nodding at the lighter with a small smile tugging at her lips as she placed the cigarette between them.

"Sierra, what the fuck?" A boy called Clive exclaimed looking shocked at her comment.

Sierra held her hands up in surrender a smirk crossing her face now "Intrusive thoughts man, but it'd be glorious, right?"

"Honestly, yeah" Henry agreed the thought exciting him, the idea of the flames licking at the forest as smoke wafted into the air creating a hazy, black smokescreen above their quaint, unloving town.

"Y'all are psychos I swear" Jack answered shaking his head.

"We're not being serious!" Henry told him unconvincingly, in reality the idea Sierra had suggested was very very appealing to him.

"Or are we?" Sierra joked giving Henry another playful nudge as Jacks deep blue eyes widened for a second before relaxing as he realised she was joking.

"It's getting kinda late guys, maybe we should head back?" Peter suggested quietly pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose anxiously, he was the cautious one of the group, he'd always be worried about getting caught whenever they got up to any kind of antics.

"Don't be such a pussy Peter" Jack answered loudly taking a puff of his cigarette then blowing the smoke into Peter's face making him cough and send a scowl Jack's way which was met with a overly sweet smirk from Jack.

"Don't be an arse babe" Lucy commented quietly giving Jack a small kiss on the cheek, Henry rolled his eyes at the affection. He'd always found the relationship between Jack and Lucy too lovey dovey for his liking, however it also came from a place of slight jealousy. Henry wasn't sure what was wrong with him, he didn't like girls he liked guys. Which he was always taught was wrong.

On top of that, the thought of being with just 1 guy didn't appeal to him, he wasn't sure what would appeal to him if being with a girl didn't and being with a guy didn't either, but maybe he'd find out one day.

"He has a point, it is getting kinda late" Clive shot back dropping his now emptied can of beer carelessly on the forest floor, it landed with a swish sending some leaves scattering around it.

"Guess so" Sierra shrugged wrapping the green scarf she had been carrying around her neck and shivering slightly from the cold.

The group began to backtrack trudging through the forest loudly. Any animals nearby would have been fully aware of their location due to the excess amount of noise being produced by their drunk conversing.

Henry meanwhile wasn't really focusing on the drunken conversation, he was walking beside Sierra occasionally glancing at her. What she'd said had excited him. It made him want to do it, to light the forest on fire. To watch it all go up in a bright orange and yellow ball of flames.

"Sierra" Henry whispered sheepishly not wanting to attract anyone else's attention.

"Mhm" Sierra hummed in response taking a drag of her cigarette then looking up at Henry wistfully.

"What you said about lighting the forest on fire" Henry started but she cut him off looking ashamed.

"It was just an off the cuff comment Henry, sorry" she apologised with a small shrug.

"No but, do you actually wanna do it?" Henry queried feeling butterflies in his stomach, she gazed up at him in surprise before a small smile tugged at her lips.

"I'm game if you are" She whispered glancing around to ensure none of the others were listening.

"It's definitely illegal" Henry countered in hesitation.

"All the more fun then" Sierra told him devilishly. Henry nodded feeling adrenaline beggining to course through his veins, a desire he'd always had was about to be quashed.

As the group all separated saying their goodbyes Henry and Sierra stalked back into the forest under the cover of the moonlight. Once they reached a thickly forested area they began to gather sticks to build their fire.

"I think this is enough" Sierra panted unloading a final pile of small twigs and branches onto their molehill of spiky sticks.

"Yeah" Henry nodded in agreement looking down at it. He then reached into his jacket pocket producing his lighter. Exchanging excited smiles the pair held sticks to the lighter allowing them to burst into flames before hurriedly dropping them onto the pile giggling with excitement.

Sierra let out a small, ecstatic shriek as the pile started to smoulder then lit alight fully. The flames licked brightly in the otherwise moody forest creating a welcoming warmth.

"It's beautiful" Sierra commented glancing up at Henry, Henry ran his hand through his ginger hair nodding in agreement, the fire was so bright. It almost hurt his eyes yet his gaze was fixed on it, he couldn't look away from the sight.

"It's spreading" he whispered out in awe as the pair watched the wind pick up causing the fire to spread towards their direction engulfing dead leaves and dried sticks that littered the ground, however suddenly the breeze really started to pick up making the fire spread quicker and more rapidly. It spread to a nearby bush lighting it ablaze within seconds.

The pair jumped back Sierra gripping onto Henry's arm in fear "I think we should go" Sierra whispered starting to step back. Henry watched as the fire spread onto an old oak tree tinging the bark of the tree a deadly shade of orange as the flames climbed meanly up it.

Taking one last sharp look back the two set off running back the way they'd come, smoke was now billowing strongly around them blocking their vision as they coughed and spluttered. It had been spreading quicker than the flames so they hadn't noticed it engulf the woods around them until it was too late, by this point the fire had gotten way more out of hand than either of them could've imagined. It filled Henry with both terror and pure excitement as they sprinted from it.

Suddenly a shrill crack filled the air as Sierra tumbled down. Henry skidded to a halt looking wildly around for her but being unable to see her "My Ankle! I think it's broken!" Sierra screamed from somewhere within the haze.

Henry stumbled around trying to locate his friend desperately. The heat from the fire was blasting him now as sirens could be heard in the distance getting ever closer.

"Sierra!" Henry called out into the smoke, however there was no reply from her. Feeling a pit grow in his stomach as he coughed bitterly Henry choked out again "Sierra? Where are you?"

Still hearing no response and feeling his lungs filling with the black smoke Henry had no choice but to turn and run leaving her behind, feeling a numbing guilt wash through his body Henry made his way out of the forest back onto the beaten city tracks.

Turning one final time Henry stared at the massive cloud of smoke billowing from the woods. It had worked, they'd set it alight. It was all burning down and their desires had been answered. But at what cost?