Project Fire

Ding-dong.

Ding-dong.

Ding-dong.

The doorbell wouldn't stop ringing.

Cautiously, Harry approached the door.

He placed his hand on the doorknob.

Paused.

Took a breath.

Something felt… off.

He twisted the handle slowly and opened the door with care.

And then

"What are YOU doing here?!" two voices shouted at the same time.

Harry's eyes went wide.

A tall, sharp-jawed guy stood on the doorstep. Muscular. Expensive clothes. Expensive attitude.

It was Tyler.

His expression twisted in shock when he saw Harry. But that shock quickly turned into something else rage.

Without waiting for an invite, Tyler stormed inside.

Harry took a step back. "Hey! You can't just walk in like that."

Tyler brushed past him, heading straight to the living room.

"You think this is your house now?" Tyler snapped. "What are you even doing here?!"

Harry's jaw clenched. "That's none of your business."

"This is Anna's place," Tyler said, his voice rising. "You don't belong here."

Harry stood his ground.

"I was invited," he said firmly.

Tyler scoffed. "By who? Anna? Don't make me laugh. She doesn't bring trash like you home."

Before Harry could answer, a door opened behind them.

Anna stepped out of her room."What's going on?"

Her voice froze the room.

Harry and Tyler turned toward her at the same time.

"Anna," Tyler said, his tone shifting. "Tell him to leave."

But Anna looked between the two, confused and alarmed.

"What are you even doing here, Tyler?" she asked.

"I came to check on you!" Tyler replied. "Because I care. But then I find him here? In your house?!"

Anna stepped between them. "Calm down. Both of you."

Tyler pointed a finger at Harry. "You have no idea who this guy really is."

Anna frowned. "Tyler, this is Harry. He's my college friend."

Harry crossed his arms, staying silent.

Anna continued, turning to Harry. "And Tyler… this is my family friend. We've known each other since we were kids."

Tyler's face twisted again this time with disbelief. "You call him a friend? You don't even know who he really is."

"I know enough," Anna said.

But Tyler wasn't done.

"You don't belong around people like us," he told Harry. "You're not from our world."

Harry blinked slowly.

"I know you," Tyler went on, voice filled with poison. "You're that poor kid from the scholarship program. The one always becomes a joke in college and rejected by Jessica."

Harry didn't say a word.

He didn't have to.

The words hit like punches, but he took them in silence.

Anna's expression darkened. "That's enough, Tyler."

Tyler didn't stop. "Come on, Anna. You deserve better than this. Guys like him losers like him only drag you down. He doesn't match your standard."

Harry turned slowly.

His heart pounded, but his face remained calm.

"I'm going," he said quietly.

He didn't look back.

He walked toward the door, grabbed his jacket, and placed his hand on the handle.

"Harry, wait!" Anna called out.

But he didn't.

He pulled the door open.

Anna ran to him and grabbed his arm. "You're not going anywhere."

Harry hesitated.

Anna stood beside him now, facing Tyler. Her voice was firm. Clear.

"He is my friend," she said. "And I won't let you treat him like garbage."

Tyler looked like someone had slapped him.

"I don't believe this," he said. "You're defending him?"

Anna nodded. "Yes. Because when I was new in college and had no one, he was the one who helped me. Not you. While you were busy partying with your circle, he was the one making sure I was okay."

Tyler's mouth opened, but no words came.

"He may not have money," Anna added. "But he has something far more valuable heart."

Harry stood still, surprised by her words. His chest ached but for a different reason now.

Tyler's fists clenched.

"This is a mistake," he growled. "You'll regret this, Anna."

"No," she said. "I regret not seeing people for who they really are sooner."

Tyler stood frozen.

Then, without another word, he turned and walked out.

The door slammed behind him.

Silence filled the room.

Harry still stood near the doorway, unsure of what to say.

Anna turned to him slowly.

"You okay?" she asked.

He gave a half-nod. "Yeah. Just… didn't expect all that."

Anna crossed her arms and let out a long breath. "Neither did I."

Harry looked down. "You didn't have to defend me."

"Yes, I did."

He looked at her, surprised.

"You matter to me, Harry. No matter what Tyler or anyone says."

He smiled a little, but it didn't last.

"I should still go," he said quietly.

"Don't," she replied instantly. "Not because of him."

"But..."

"Harry," she cut him off. "I want you to stay. Please."

The silence stretched again.

Then Harry stepped away from the door.

Anna smiled faintly. "Good."

Anna closed the door softly behind them.

The echo of Tyler's anger still lingered in the air, but inside the room, everything had changed.

Harry stood still. Uncertain.

Anna walked slowly to him.

Neither of them spoke.

Her eyes searched his.

Gentle. Warm. Honest.

He looked away.

"I shouldn't have come," Harry murmured.

Anna reached out and touched his hand. "But you did. And I'm glad."

Her fingers tightened around his.

Harry swallowed hard.

"I don't understand why you stood up for me like that," he said.

Anna stepped closer. "Because I meant every word."

She moved in, inches away from him now.

"You've always been there for me, Harry. Quietly. Without asking for anything in return. No one else ever did that."

Harry's breath caught.

The air between them felt charged. Heavy with words left unspoken.

Her hand moved up to his cheek. Soft. Tender.

"I see you," she whispered. "Not your clothes. Not your past. Just… you."

Harry's heart thundered.

No one had ever said that to him before.

"Anna…" he started.

But she leaned in before he could finish.

Their lips met.

Gently, at first.

Then deeper.

More certain.

Harry pulled her closer, arms wrapping around her like he was afraid to let go.

She didn't resist.

In fact, she leaned into him, anchoring herself to him like he was the only thing real in a storm.

Their kiss turned slow and intense.

Her hands tangled in his hair.

His fingers gripped her waist.

They stumbled toward the couch.

Still kissing.

Still breathing each other in.

Harry paused.

"Are you sure?"

Anna nodded, her voice barely a whisper. "Yes. I want this. I want you."

He didn't move for a second.

Just looked at her. Really looked.

And then...

They fell together.

Clothes shifted.

Breaths deepened.

Fingers explored.

Their bodies spoke what their mouths couldn't.

What had started as a storm of anger and heartbreak now melted into warmth, connection, and something more.

Time blurred.

It was soft.

Messy.

Real.

They weren't perfect.

But they were honest.

When it was over, they lay tangled together on the couch.

Silence again.

But a good one this time.

Anna rested her head on his chest.

Harry stared at the ceiling, heart still racing.

He'd never felt anything like that.

Not just the touch.

But the trust.

The acceptance.

"Still think you should've left?" Anna asked quietly.

Harry chuckled under his breath. "Not even a little."

She smiled, eyes closed.

Outside, the world continued.

But inside this small space, they'd carved out something just for themselves.

Something fragile.

Something beautiful.

Something real.

Meanwhile Somewhere deep within the HumanOx underground facility...

The room was dim, lit only by the red glow of warning lights pulsing softly like a heartbeat. A giant screen flickered in front of a control panel, replaying footage of Vector's failure again and again.

The camera zoomed in on the moment Harry stood tall, untouched by Vector's final strike.

A faint crack echoed.

A pair of boots stepped forward from the shadows. The figure's face remained hidden in darkness, but his voice sliced through the silence like a razor.

"Two chances. Two failures. And now… wasted breath."

Vexley.

He emerged just far enough for the lights to catch the gleam in his eyes cold, intelligent, unforgiving.

Across the room, Vector stood slouched, bruised, his mechanical enhancements sparking from internal damage. He tried to speak.

"Please… one more chance. I can fix this. I just..."

Bang.

The bullet punched through Vector's forehead. His body collapsed in a smoking heap.

Vexley holstered his gun without a blink.

"There are no third chances in my world."

He turned toward the screen. Harry's face glowed on it, frozen mid-frame defiant, powerful, alive.

Vexley's jaw tightened.

"So... the failed subject survived. How poetic."

He tapped a button on the console. A file opened. Code name: PROJECT: FIRE.

"Let's see what real power looks like."

A sealed chamber hissed open in the background. Inside, a man stood suspended in a vertical tank, veins glowing with molten-orange light. His flesh seemed unstable flickering between solid skin and raging flame.

Sensors beeped. The glass vibrated.

The figure inside clenched his fist and the temperature in the room surged.

The shadows on the walls danced like terrified witnesses.

"He was made from fire," Vexley whispered, almost reverently. "Now… he becomes it."

Suddenly, the containment glass shattered not with force, but as if melted from within.

BOOM!

Flames exploded outward. Alarms screamed. Lights burst and fell from the ceiling.

Through the smoke and fire stepped a man if he could still be called that.

His eyes burned like dying suns. His skin shifted like living magma. Fire clung to him like a crown.

He didn't walk. He glided, leaving scorched footprints behind him.

"Where... is the boy?" he asked, his voice like a furnace roar.

Vexley smiled from the shadows.

"Find him. Burn the world if you must. Just bring me what's left."

Outside the HumanOx facility, a crow burst into flight, startled by a heatwave that rolled unnaturally through the forest.

Miles away, Harry sat unaware his life about to change forever.