Gus

The Sleepless Night

A couple of days after Christmas, Tessa's family left. I felt too embarrassed to say good-bye to any of them, especially Kelly.

On New Year's Eve, my mother left me alone in the house, since I was technically a teenager. She told me she was going 'out' to celebrate the new year and I was not to leave the house. I obeyed, and stayed in the living room watching TV up until 10:30.

At 10:30, I heard people piling into Tessa's house. I closed the windows and turned up the TV, hoping to keep their nuisance out. But it was no use; I heard the excited screams of young adults and loud music through the windows. I looked outside to see practically the entire house glowing in a wide range of colors. Pissed that Tessa hadn't changed her ways at all, I grabbed my jacket and stomped over to the raving house. I pounded on the door and a young man weakly opened the door with a Solo cup in his hand.
"Hey, it's a kid. What's up kid, you want a drink?" he asked groggily.
"Do you know where Tessa is?" I asked him sternly.
"Uhhhhhhh..... I dunno."
I shoved aside the drunken man and entered the house. The scene vaguely reminded me of when Tessa had thrown that party in my house years ago; people crowding each other with drinks, sleeping and making out, a large stereo booming terrible music. It was also weird seeing her house look like a fraternity house when it looked so much nicer just a few days ago.
I found Tessa in her bedroom, asleep. There was a man next to her and some cups on the floor. I shoved her and the man awake and she at first couldn't recognize me.
"Are you the pizza guy?" Tessa asked, "he was... he was supposed to come hours ago."
"It's me, Gus," I said, "listen, you have to turn down the volume on this party! You're gonna get yourself arrested again!"
I turned and suddenly noticed all the electronics in the bedroom. There was a table that had a bunch of computers and jumbled wires and such.
"Tessa, where did all this come from?" I asked.
"Oh, that's my new....stuff," she said, waving her hand in the air, "I'm gonna be a DJ... right baby?" Then she kissed the man in the bed with her.
"How did you even afford all this?"
Tessa scoffed. "Ugh, its, like... not your business, Gary!"
"She used the check... thing," the man said tiredly.
"Derrick!"
I stood shocked. I knew Tessa wasn't going to use all the money for a good cause, but I didn't think she'd stoop this low. The amount of electronics on that tables must have costed at least $8,000. Tessa and Derrick stared at me as I made my way out of the bedroom and went downstairs. I gave up and left the party the same way it was when I came there.

At 11:55, I turned the TV to the ball drop and grabbed a snack. My mother wasn't home yet and the party next door was still going on strong. As the time neared midnight, I could hear people from the house screaming, "We're almost there! It's almost the new year! Only a few more minutes!"
When the ball dropped, it sounded like a bar when their favorite football team won the Super Bowl. People went nuts and turned the music up even louder. I actually started hearing joyful screams from other houses. I couldn't stand it. This was not how I wanted to start out the new year. I dug through my house for my headphones and put on some music while I waited for my mother to come home.

***************
I was awakened by a police officer at 2:12 in the morning. He asked me where my parents were. I told him 'out.' He told me to get to bed and left my house.
I saw blinking blue and red lights through my curtains. I figured the only ones who were getting arrested tonight were Tessa and all her drunk friends. I smiled as I realized there was no more loud music playing. Curious to see the scene, I got up off the couch I had fallen asleep on and wandered outside.

The first thing I saw when I got out was a fire truck. I saw firemen with hoses chatting to each other by the truck. I then saw several police cars surrounding the truck, and surrounding the police cars were a group of neighbors. I turned my head a little and my stomach dropped; the entire house was gone. Then a hideous scent of smoke barreled my nose.
I wandered over to a policeman and asked him what happened. He told me that the stereo in the living room burst into flames for currently unknown reasons and engulfed the entire living room, killing about 35% of the people there. Apparently, since the people in the party were tipsy and panicking too much to get a hold of he situation, some ran to other rooms and spread the fire around the house until, within a half hour, it burned down completely. Half of the party survived, but with severe injuries. I asked the policeman if he knew if a woman named Tessa had survived, and he told me he didn't know. I thanked the officer and went back home, lied in my bed, and stared at the ceiling until I heard my mother open the front door, calling my name in distress repeatedly and demanding what happened to that 'blonde next door.'