Clare sat in the chair for at least half an hour, wondering why she was being so stupid, when suddenly a fire alarm started. So that was it! God had sent a warning. She had heard about things like this before. In a mad panic, she put on her jacket, slung her bag over her shoulder and ran from the room straight across to Alan. She knocked loudly on the door.
"Alan, quick, wake up. There's a fire!"
She rattled the handle of the door and the door sprang open. Alan was fast asleep in bed. She ran to him shouting,
"Quick, get up. There's a fire. We have to go."
She tugged him out of the bed and he half fell upon the floor. He was wearing a tee shirt, boxer shorts and a pair of socks.
"What are you on about? What are you doing?" he muttered.
Clare pulled him to his feet and shook him.
"There's a fire, we have to leave...now."
As realisation dawned, terror leapt into his eyes.
"A fire, oh my God..." he gasped.
Clare grabbed his jeans from the chair and thrust his jacket at him. She pushed him towards the door and out into the corridor. The fire alarm screamed in their ears. He headed towards the lift, but Clare stopped him.
"No, the stairs."
Holding his hand, she pulled him as fast as she could towards the stairs and continued to pull him, stumbling behind her down and down four long flights. At last they were at the bottom, they ran along the last corridor and out of the front door. She heard Alan curse as something banged heavily on the wooden door and they spewed out onto the pavement.
Still pulling him, he was limping now, she ran across the road and onto the opposite pavement, where a crowd of people from the hotel were gathered in the damp, windswept darkness. Safe now, but with a distressed Alan at her side, Clare turned back towards the hotel just as a loud explosion ripped through the building, shattering the windows. A loud gasp of shock went up from the onlookers... and the fire began to rage.
Alan slumped down onto the floor, resting his back against the railings. He was still clutching his jeans and jacket.
"I'm trembling." said Clare as she sat down beside him and rested her head against his.
A middle aged man came up to them.
"Oh my godfathers, you were the last two out of there! Are you all right?"
"I banged my knee on that bloody door." said Alan rubbing his knee, "Are you all right, Clare?"
"Just about...how scary! You said we were the last out of there?"
"We were downstairs in the lounge having a quizz, when someone smelt fire. We all came outside, but as the smoke alarm hadn't gone off, the owner had to set it off manually. Thank goodness it had a manual override, otherwise you wouldn't have got out."
Alan stood up and pulled on his jeans and jacket. Sirens were heard in the distance and then in a blur of red and blue the Fire Brigade appeared. The firemen made the crowd move further down the beach front away from danger. Everyone watched as hoses were connected and ladders erected and the firemen began to fight the fire, which was beginning to claim the roof. It took some time to control, due to the strength of the wind.
Owners of other hotels and guest houses came out and told the now shivering, homeless guests how many rooms they had in their establishments and gradually, each one of the guests found accommodation for the night. Clare and Alan had to share a double room in a guest house, which was a little way away from the sea front, as it was the last room available.
At 1.30 am. Alan was sitting on the bed removing his wet socks and wiping his feet with a towel.
"I am so glad we didn't stop to find my shoes, but my feet are frozen."
"They'll soon warm up when you get into bed." Clare replied.
There was a knock on their door. Clare answered it. The landlady was outside carrying a tray with drinks and biscuits.
"I felt you needed a hot drink." she said.
"That's very kind of you" said Clare. "We are feeling cold."
The landlady came into the room and placed the tray on a small table.
"I expect it's the shock. If you need them, there are a couple of spare blankets in the cupboard. Goodnight, whatever is left of it." She left, closing the door behind her.
"Ooh, look it's hot chocolate and she's given us some biscuits." said Clare, picking one up and taking a bite. Then she handed a cup of hot chocolate to Alan.
"This will warm you up."
He took a sip, drank the chocolate quickly and then climbed into the bed and pulled the covers up over his chin. Clare sat on the bed, drank her chocolate and finished the biscuit. She could tell by Alan's chalk white face that he was traumatised by the evenings events, so she turned off the light, quickly undressed and climbed into the bed beside him. He was shaking so much that his teeth were chattering and his whole body was icy cold. Clare began to worry.
"We could have died." Alan said. "You saved my life... Oh Clare, we could have died."
He pulled Clare into his arms and kissed her.
"Alan," she whispered into his ear, "I don't believe in sex before marriage. So I hope you understand that this is purely a case of necessity...seeing as they didn't have any single rooms left..." She wasn't sure whether he heard her or not, but he said "Just hold me Clare, I need you to hold me....."
Alan was still shivering, so shortly afterwards she got out of bed and looked in the cupboard for the extra blankets and put them on the bed. She held Alan in her arms until he fell asleep and she fell asleep shortly afterwards.
* * * * * *