One second is all it takes.

A tiring work day left you exhausted by the time your daughter was picked up from daycare. When night fell, and your daughter was safely sleeping in her crib, you finally found some peace to relax.

A slight huff escaped your lips as you sat back, crossing your legs as your feet rest on the edge of the coffee table. The calm, warm wave of heat from the fire crackled as you flipped to the next page in your book.

After a while, you adjust your legs, letting your feet meet the carpet. You set the book on the coffee table before grabbing your phone. The time read 11:27pm, and of course, your relaxation time was cut short by the sounds of your daughter’s cries.

She finally soothes after a quick nursing session. Right as she’s closing her eyes, the loud beeping from a fire alarm, the smell of smoke apparent after, echos through your home. In no time you rush to get your phone, calling 911 and packing a few belongings before rushing to your balcony, away from the fire.

Before you knew it, your house was brought down in flames with you and your baby stuck on the second floor. The warm orange flames with black smoke made it hard to breathe. Firefighters rush to put out the fire while trying to get you and your baby down. After some explaining, it was assumed a flame caught on your book.

One of the female firefighters urged you to throw down your baby. “Ma’am, you have to throw down your baby! There is no way you’ll be able to jump to that ladder while holding a baby!” You were hesitant obviously, but all was well when she caught your baby, bringing her to safety.

A dominant man, assuming to be the lieutenant in the fire station with his strong authority, was the man on the ladder waiting for you. You couldn’t see his face that well due to the shield and smoke, but a big skull patch on his helmet was visible.

“We have your baby, and we need the mom, preferably not burnt, too. On a count of 3, i need you to jump over the edge and i’ll catch you incase you lose your balance, yeah?”