As soon as Hunter opened the kitchen door, he cursed. The burned smell had returned. The room was filled with smoke. Leaving the door open, Hunter dashed inside to open all the windows, trying to fan the smoke out. He switched off the gas underneath the pan on the stove, where something burned beyond recognition smoldered, threatening to burst into flame at any moment.
The kitchen smoke detector screamed, unnerving him even more.
This time he remembered to grab a tea towel before picking up the pan. He rushed over to the sink with it and turned the water on full. A great hissing and cloud of steam rolled up.
“Damn,” he whispered. “Damn.” Lowering his head, he began to cry.
