The words scrambled upon the letter. Eyes blurred with disbelief. He couldn’t believe it had gotten this bad.

Months and months of paying off debt, he thought he was close to being debt-free. But it seemed the more he paid, the more he owed. And this letter was the final straw.

His mind began spiralling as he looked for a solution, for anything to sell. But his eyes only fell on the fireplace.

“I can't,” he whispered to an empty room.

But there was nothing left to sell, all his prized possessions were already sold off online and to friends. He had nothing left to give. 

His final possession was his home.

He placed a sorry hand against the wall and allowed a tear to fall down his cheek.

“I tried,” he cried.

The only way out of this debt was to burn down his house and claim the insurance money.

He lit the match and struck a flame forgetting he had no insurance to speak off. He couldn’t afford it any longer.

But when he remembered his house was already up in flames.