Don't Clown Around

I'm about to tell you a story that's a bit horrifying to me. It's a story of a small town, in Chicago.  The year was 1919.  Tom, Eric, Nathing, and Richard, went to college together. They know each other since the age of five.  Always doing everything together.  While in high school they had a small business.  They played in parties, mostly birthday parties.  You see they were clowns.  The business was quite successful that the earning was paying for there tuition.

It was 1919, clowns weren't so popular.  Many of their classmates, considered them freaks with makeup.   Tom was the one with the car, which they took turns driving.  Hoping that their business will later pay off, they got the education needed.   Tom was a balloon clown.  He made all didn't kinds of animals and objects with long thin balloons.  Eric was a juggler, of anything that was light enough to juggle.   Nathing was the clown of magic cards tricks and Richard did a little bit of everything. 

The young men were always in their own group.  They have never invited to parties unless they were children parties and they were getting paid.  Although they were considered to be weird, in spite of the treatment, the young men felted confident.

Most girls found them creepy, so they didn't date much, so when they were finally invited to a party, they believe they were finally excepted.

It was mystery night, the day when the dead rise and get revenge on those who harmed them.  So that's the tale that I heard, if you die with violence and vengeance in your mind on a Mystery night, the dead can rise and take your life.

The invitation read, "Wear a custom" in bold letters.   Their names weren't even written on the invite, it read "To the Clowns.  Then they draw a happy face in red ink.  Tom found the envelope as he enters the apartment, which they all shared. 

"Nathing, dude check this out.  Someone invited us to a Halloween Party.  Shit, how cool is that?' Tom said with a smile and gladness that someone knew they were alive.  "Let me take a look," he replied taking the card out of his hands and proceeding to open it.

"Shit, it's real. We are all invited." he said  "When is it?" asked Eric  "It's on the third of October.  So are we going or not?" replied Nathing  "What do you think?" he asked as he turns to Richard.  "Don't know? No one invites us anywhere, why now?" he replied  "You make sense, but look, dude, we'll not getting any younger.  I don't want to finish school and never seen a frat party.  Nothing to tell my children about." said Tom   "So what are you say, we're going?" asked Richard  "Well why not?" asked Tom  "Fine, but if we do go, we don't split up.  We stay together at all times." said Nathing    "So what should we wear?" asked  Eric   "It says dress as a clown, so I guess that what we're going as, clowns, four wonderful smart clowns.  I really hope one of us get lucky tonight and I hope that somebody is me.  Let me go pick out what I'm wearing." said Tom as he headed to his bedroom.

Richard glanced at the others, "Are you sure this is a good idea?  These guys always make fun of us.  Why will they invite us? I really don't feel good about this." he said   "Don't worry, as long as will stick together, we'll be fine.  Let's go pick out our clown outfits." replied  Nathing trying to assure Richard that everything was going to be all right.