𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒓 ✞𝑡𝑜𝑚 𝑘𝑎𝑢𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑧✞

part one

As the heavy smoke circulated in the dim light, the crowded collection of faceless bodies filtered into the basement lit from above by the yellow overhead lights. She weaved through the space, a lit blunt between her lips and a bottle of cheap tequila clutched in her left hand. Absent mind, she slumped down into the aged reclining chair beside the window, throwing her legs over the armrest and softly closing her eyes as the low hum of the shuffling bodies and their conversations enveloped around her. Scattered across the various pieces of old furniture, small assemblies of people sprawled casually drinking or smoking as the air became thick with the bitter smell of weed, alcohol and teenage hormones.

Numb to the responsibility of hosting, Robyn relaxed further into the chair feeling the wave of melancholy wash over her, her eyes now heavy and dry as she attempted to forget the previous events of the night. She gave up and managed to find enjoyment in the escape as the nameless strangers enjoyed the party unsure of who's house they were currently inside. As usual, it was hers.

Typically, Robyn was a usual party girl always hosting various groups of people in her basement allowing strangers to treat her home as if it were there own. Inside, the basement was home to a collection of forgotten lounge chairs and couches that once lived in her living room before being replaced by newer ones. Despite this, the basement was her favourite and where most of these events took place, now slightly decorated with large tapestries that hung from ceiling to two of the four walls with a large beer pong table to the left, now littered with forgotten solo cups and empty bottles. In addition to this, there was a small bathroom that more than likely contained a pair of teenagers presumably having sex and a black record player that spun in the corner now filling the room with smooth r&b behind the inaudible conversations.

The night had been a disaster and for the first time, Robyn recognised that all of this may be her own fault and perhaps she was the issue behind it all.

Quickly casting this thought to the side, she took a long drag of the blunt and sank deeper into her new found numbness leaving the it poised between her fingers and the bottle of tequila gently rested on her thigh. Between what felt like sleep, she noticed the conversation quieten and the scale of the party rapidly reduce down to a few typical stoners and past out white girls who looked like shit. Makeup smeared down their cheeks, the two girls were collapsed into the sofa like a tangled web of limbs half-naked and hair sprawled over the brown couch. Noticing this, Robyn tossed over an old blanket to cover them for what she presumed who be them spending the night.

Gazing up at the browned ceiling, her eyes rolled deep into the back of her head as she rested her neck into the plush back of the lounger. How could all of this happen in one stupid night?

~*~

Jarringly, the light from beyond the window plummeted in through the half open curtains casting a yellowish glow over the handful of teenagers faces, all of which responded with a groan and a roll over. Robyn, who was closest to the window, strained adjusting to the brightness before squinting and scanning the room in confusion. There was the two girls still sleeping on the sofa, a long haired boy sitting with his back to the wall inhaling long drags of a thin blunt and a pair of older football players in the two other armchairs quietly asking questions about the previous night.

Mindlessly, she gazed out of the window for almost half an hour recalling the events of last night and groaning as she felt the familiar pit of guilt and heartbreak grow deep in her stomach. The group behind her slowly arose at various times some immediately checking the time and darting out while others simply yawned and absorbed their surroundings as if this was something to be accustomed to.

Wearily, she felt her joints crack as she propped up onto her feet and lazily approached the group. The only two remaining were one of the passes our girls and the long haired boy who she both lightly kicked and nodded in the direction of the door. Wordlessly, the both obliged collecting their belongings and followed her up the stairs to the front door. She lowered her head casting a stern gaze at the long haired boy before darting her eyes down to the lit blunt in his hand. He interpreted this correctly as a means of asking for it and exhaled frustratedly before passing it over and leaving with the girl.

It's being barely sunrise, Robyn felt the warm wood beneath her bare feet as she stepped out onto the porch, the summer breeze flooding her bare arms and stomach. She wore a pair of faded baggy jeans that sat below her hips and a thin white cami top that was now misshapen and disarranged due to her odd sleeping arrangements. The wood creaked and groaned beneath her as she slumped down into the porch front step securing the blunt between her lips and inhaling its sweet smoke.

Snapping from her reverie, the soft growl of an engine rounded into the neighbourhood pulling up onto the sidewalk with a clatter. She squinted further to attempt to see better while blowing the smoke out of the side of her mouth. Out of the truck, two large men clambered from the seats and slid open the back of the van. A moving truck.

Following it shortly after, a sleek black car pulled into the neighbouring driveway before a taller tanned women stepped out of the driver seat. The two back doors also swung open as two teenage boys groaned and stretched after what she presumed to be a long drive. The taller of the boys wore a pattered black and white quarter zip with some form of black pants whereas the other had an oversized brown jersey and baggy sweatpants that hung loosely from his frame.

Tilting her head, she watched as the three followed each other inside smiling as the woman gave a slight side hug to the two younger boys. She assumed their mother.

Unaware to even knowing she would have nee neighbours, Robyn watched them closely, feeling the pit in her stomach grow larger as they interacted. The mother smiled a bright and warm smile as she instructed the movers on which pieces of furniture should be prioritised and their correct location in the house. The sons followed her, bound with boxes of various possessions and clutter labelled 'kitchen' or 'bill's room'.

It was moments like this where she craved company. Yes, she was cold and independent with a prominent sense of offensive sarcasm that made her hate most people. But, with her father returning in almost two months, she couldn't help but wish for it to be sooner. She missed the routine, the lack of responsibility and most of all the comfort of knowing she was not alone. Often, she thought this was the reasoning behind her excessive partying, drinking and drug use but the strangers at these events were barely company and didn't fulfil the gap in her social life she often craved.

Remaining absent from reality, Robyn continued smoking on her porch unaware to the pair of light eyes that had fallen upon her. The shorter of the two teenage boys with matted brown dreadlocks leapt up into the moving truck, selecting a pile of boxed labelled 'toms stuff' before leaning onto the frame of the truck and taking in his new surroundings. He watched her tilting his head downward to see her beneath the brim of his white cap. She looked peaceful and quiet as he watched the white smoke stream from her lips and disperse into the air past her absent eyes.

After several moments, his brother Bill yawned as he joined him at the rear of the moving truck sitting down on its edge and dangling his legs above the pavement.

"Who's that?" Bill asked squinting in the sun. When his brother didn't reply, he lifted his head up and watched as Tom stared.

"I don't know. Our new neighbour I guess." he replied, a slight smile tugging at his lips.