Tough Times at the Halloween House Party

Tough Times at the Halloween House Party

The moon was down and out for the count as Eddie cruised down the road towards a party he wasn’t sure he wanted to go to. A bottle of Gray Goose rode shotgun with him, buckled in with a seatbelt to boot. Eddie wasn’t an admirer of vodka himself, but the drink was a crowd-pleaser and a free gift from his cousin; so nothing gained, and nothing lost. When he was about five minutes away from his destination, a black cat leapt into the glow of Eddie’s headlights, prompting him to slam the brakes.

“Shit!” Eddie yelped, grateful that he had decided to buckle up his booze; the sound of the liquor swishing in the bottle adding to his simultaneous stress and relief. The cat remained motionless in the road for a time, staring directly at Eddie’s face; its eyes seeking entry into his soul as they shone from the lights reflected against them. The driver frustratedly honked his horn at the animal in his way, only for it to remain stationary. “Jesus…” Eddie mumbled under his breath, putting his car into park and unbuckling his seat belt. As he did, the superstition about black cats causing bad luck occurred to him, but he waved the idea away as needlessly superstitious at best, and horribly prejudiced against black cats at worst. After all, the poor bastards had enough on their plate, what with the amount of ritualistic sacrifices occurring around Halloween. It was dangerous even, for a black cat to stop in front of a car this late at night in the fall; for all it knew, Eddie was a wannabe witch primed to skin it alive for a seance, or whatever the hell amateur witches got up to.

Stepping out of his car, Eddie prepared to shoo the cat out of the way of his vehicle, only to find that there was nothing there in the patch of light. It must’ve just scampered off, Eddie thought to himself, groaning and stepping back into his car. Eddie shrugged, and buckled himself in again as snugly as the Gray Goose riding next to him.

After spending too much time finding parking by the apartments where the party was being held, Eddie knocked on the door to Tracy’s place, waiting in the cold for what felt like an eternity, only for Tracy to open the door with a wicked grin.

“Eddiiiiee, good to see ya, man!” Tracy was dressed in a classic vampire costume; white button down shirt, high collared cloak, fake fangs, and a tasteful amount of fake blood dribbling down her chin. 

“Real original,” Eddie answered, eyeing Tracy’s outfit. 

“Oh shut the hell up, you didn’t even bother to dress up. Plus, it’s bad luck to give the host shit, especially before a party,” Tracy poked Eddie’s chest just hard enough to be uncomfortable. 

“No way that’s a real thing, you made that up just now,” Eddie said, rubbing the spot where Tracy had poked him. “Though now that you mention it, I did run into a black cat on the way here.”

“You fucking killed a cat?” Tracy asked, mortified.

“No, no, it just got in the way of my car on the way here. It ran off eventually though,” Eddie clarified. “Anyways, can I come inside now? I’m kinda freezing, and tired of carrying this bottle.”

Tracy’s eyes widened. “Oh shit, yeah, yeah, come in, come in.” Tracy closed the door behind Eddie as he stepped inside. “I can take the bottle off ya, too, if you want.”

“That’d be nice, thanks,” Eddie handed Tracy the vodka. “How’s the party been so far, by the way?”

“Not bad. No one’s barfed, gotten into a fight, or died, so that’s a plus. Most people have been here for about an hour, so you’ve got a lotta drinking to catch up on,” Tracy grinned again, making a point of flashing her fangs.

“Well if your boyfriend’s here, it’ll probably be impossible for me to keep up.”

Tracy cackled as she started to walk up the stairs towards the party. “Yeah, Alex is here and several drinks in, but I wouldn’t worry about trying to compete with him. Know your limits Eddie, stay hydrated, munch on a lot of the food here, etcetera, etcetera.”

“Because I’m sure you’ll do the same,” Eddie remarked, following Tracy up the steps, as he did, he heard the faint “meow” of a cat in the periphery of his hearing. “Hey, did you guys get a cat?”

“What are you talking about?” Tracy asked, before grinning at Eddie. “Have you been pregaming with something besides booze?”

“Nope, I am regrettably sober right now,” Eddie answered, embarrassed that he brought up the question in the first place.

“Well we can change that, come on, let’s get you up already!”

Upon ascending the flight of stairs, Eddie remembered why he had reservations about coming to Tracy’s that night. A wave of conversation permeated throughout the rooms that made up Tracy’s place. Eddie felt a slight sense of relief when he saw that the number of guests donning costumes and those dressed in regular attire was roughly a fifty fifty split. Pop dance numbers blared from the speakers that Tracy, Alex, and their roommates Donna and Theodora, had painstakingly hung up around their apartment, and the unmistakable aroma of pizza and pot danced through the air. A multicolored disco ball spun in the living room, illuminating the surrounding area in a dizzying display of luminescent lights.

“Wanna throw your coat in my room?” Tracy asked. Eddie nodded in response, slipping off the army jacket he’d been wearing and handing it over to Tracy, before she leaned over to whisper in his ear:

“Oh yeah, y’know Martin’s supposed to be here tonight, right?”

Of course I know he’s gonna be here, Eddie thought to himself. That was ninety percent of my reasoning for coming to this party.

“Oh yeah? He’s not here already?” Eddie asked.

“Nah, you know Martin, always fashionably late to things,” Tracy waved her hand dismissively.

“He is pretty fashionable in regards to most things,” Eddie let out, surprising himself. Tracy smiled at him.

“Aw, cute, maybe you should try that line on him when he drops by,” Tracy half-joked. “Alright, I’m gonna go take your jacket to my room, and while I do, I’m gonna need you to do me the world’s biggest favor.”

“What?”

“Grab yourself a drink, and socialize with some people. Preferably ones you haven’t met already,” before Eddie could get a word in, Tracy was already power-walking towards her room with his jacket and the bottle of vodka; high-collared cloak flowing behind her as she did. Eddie wondered whether or not Tracy would keep the bottle to herself or distribute it to the rest of the party; either scenario seemed equally likely. Once Tracy had disappeared into her room, Eddie surveyed the crowd, taking in the lights, and the bass-heavy music. Amidst the noise he heard another “meow” in his ear, and out of the corner of his eye, thought he saw the black blur of a cat rush by his feet and disappear into the crowd of people.

Not even ten minutes in, and I’m already losing my mind at this party, Eddie thought with a sigh before making his way over to the drinks. His trek over to them was equal parts difficult and disappointing. After pushing and shimmying his way between several drunk and gyrating guests, Eddie got to the counter only to find multiple assortments of canned seltzer cocktails. He figured there wouldn’t be any beer, but still found himself let down regardless. When in Rome, I suppose, Eddie thought to himself, taking a can. 

“Yo, I thought that was you, Eh-day!” a familiar voice sounded behind Eddie. He stifled a groan as he turned to greet the person behind him.

“Hey, Alex. How ya doing?” Eddie answered with what little enthusiasm he could muster, opening his cocktail. Alex was wearing a vampire costume identical to Tracy’s. 

“Pretty good, pretty good. I was just hoping to grab another one of these…” Alex reached his arm behind Eddie to take a can, but somehow lost his balance and fell forward on top of Eddie. As they both fell to the floor, Eddie’s drink spilled all over his shirt, before him and Alex fell to the floor with a “thud”. Eddie felt eyes lock on him, and embarrassment spread through his body like the stain growing on his shirt. On the floor, he looked to his left and saw the black cat from the road next to him. Eyes closed, it grinned at him as best a cat could, playfully meowed, and trotted away into the crowd.

“Fuckin’ cat…” Eddie struggled to push the drunken bloodsucker off of himself in the hopes of pursuing the feline, but couldn’t manage.

“Yo, dude, can you get off me?” Eddie demanded, continuing his vain attempt to push Alex off of himself. 

“Dude, I think my head’s fucked…” Alex groaned. “Shit keeps spinning.”

Alex eventually managed to pick himself up, and apologized profusely, offering to lend Eddie a shirt that wasn’t stained and smelling like a seltzer cocktail. Eddie accepted reluctantly, and followed Alex to his room. 

“Sorry about that again man, I dunno what the hell happened,” Alex apologized while digging through his dresser. “Prooobably just drank too much.”

“Wouldn’t put it past ya…” Eddie mumbled just audibly enough for Alex to hear.

“Aw, Eddie, ya son of a bitch, you know me too well,” Alex chuckled as he passed Eddie a Guns N’ Roses tank top.

“Do you not have anything else?” Eddie asked, clearly disappointed at the selection.

“Sorry man, I haven’t done my laundry in a minute, so unless you want something that smells like sweaty me, that’s all you got. Unless you want me to dig around in Tracy’s dresser,” Alex leaned in next to Eddie, who shrunk away from the faux vampire’s presence. “Besides, Trace told me you’re probably gonna try and make a move on Martin tonight, so it might not be a bad idea to let your guns out. Show a li’l skin, y’know what I mean?”

“Ugh, fine.” Eddie relented, unbuttoning his soaked shirt, and pulling on the tank top. “Thanks, by the way.”

“Hey, no problem Ed, it’s the least I could do for ya. And y’know, while I’m at it, how about I give you some more advice for seducing Martin?”

“Sure, lay it on me,” Eddie said, despite not really wanting to hear what this drunk straight man had to say about picking up dudes.

“Alright, so you just gotta find a nice, secluded place for the two of you to duck away to, chat him up for a little bit about whatever, and when the moment feels right, lean in real close and say…” Alex paused for dramatic effect, “I vant, to suck, your cock! Bleh, bleh, bleh!” Alex held his hands up like claws as he delivered the line before laughing like a madman and collapsing on his bed in hysterics.

“Oh man, I’m sorry Eddie, I had to, ha-ha!”

Eddie rolled his eyes and walked out of the room while Alex continued to laugh himself to pieces. How Tracy managed to make things work with him, Eddie would never quite understand. After stepping back onto the party floor, he began making his way to the counter to grab himself another drink or two when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He grabbed it from his pocket while still making his way towards the table and saw a message from Tracy:

Guess who I’m letting in right now? Kidding, won’t make you do that. It’s Martin.

Eddie felt his heart skip several beats as he read the message, and made an effort to get to the drinks even faster. He pushed through the same grouping of people as before, this time double checking the floor to see if the cat was abound at all, and breathed a sigh of relief when he managed to secure two cans without any more misfortune befalling him. After successfully completing his mission, Eddie opened up one of the cans and downed it in a few gulps, he had catching up to do after all, feeling his head grow slightly numb and his body begin to relax just a bit before tossing the empty can and opening the other one for some more leisurely sipping. Wandering around the apartment, he kept an eye out for both Martin and the black cat in between the packed crowd before finally seeing the object of his affection walk in with Tracy through the entrance to the apartment.

Martin was another guest that hadn’t dressed up, sporting a hoodie underneath a leather jacket in lieu of a costume. Taking another swig of his drink, Eddie made his way towards the two of them while also trying to not make his intentions too clear. Upon noticing Eddie, Tracy said a few words to Martin that Eddie couldn’t make out and walked off to mingle with other guests. As Tracy left, Martin looked up to see Eddie and waved in his general direction. Eddie glanced behind himself just in case Martin was greeting someone else, but when he whipped his head back towards him, he was already approaching Eddie.

“Heya, Eddie,” Martin said with a smile that threatened to turn Eddie into a puddle of mush. “Tracy was just telling me you could show me where the drinks were at.”

“Damn, she couldn’t show you herself? Some host, am I right?” Eddie attempted to conceal his nervousness as he chuckled, but couldn’t be sure if he had managed to. Regardless, Martin smiled and laughed as well, remarking that Tracy probably had other things to attend to. 

“I’m digging the tank top, by the way. Guns N’ Roses is probably one of my favorite bands,” Martin commented while following Eddie to the counter. 

“What? No way!” Eddie let out in utter disbelief that his tumble with Alex had actually worked out for the better.

“Yeah, I’ve been listening to them since like, middle school. Appetite For Destruction basically taught me how to play guitar.”

“Well hey, maybe you could show me your skills at some-” Eddie’s flirting, and any other conversations amongst the partygoers was interrupted by a roar from the living room.

“Get the fuck back here you liar!” a man dressed as a werewolf in a plaid shirt shouted from the living room. A terrified guest donning a Captain America costume scurried into the kitchen right next to Eddie. As Eddie looked in the direction of the terrified Avenger, he noticed the black cat standing on top of the fridge, grinning again, and staring directly at him. His heart sank while the altercation proceeded.

“I’m telling the truth, man! I didn’t fuck your girlfriend!” Captain America pleaded with the wolfman, who had managed to rip the disco ball out of its place in the ceiling.

“Then why the fuck would she tell me you did!?” the wolfman belted, throwing the disco ball at his adversary. Captain America ducked out of the way in anticipation of being hit, but the ball of light ended up hitting a different mark. Eddie was knocked backwards as the ball crashed directly in his face, causing him and his drink to tumble to the floor. As his consciousness began to wane, he heard what sounded like Tracy and Alex arguing with the werewolf. He felt a sandpapery texture rubbing against his right hand, and looked to see the black cat smiling directly at him. Son of a fucking bitch… Eddie thought, before his mind slipped into darkness.

When he woke up, Eddie found that someone had transported him onto the couch in the living room. His head ached worse than it ever had from a hangover, and he turned to his side to see Tracy, Alex, Donna, and Theodora were all working to clean up garbage left over from the other night. Donna was the first to notice that Eddie had come to.

“Yo, Eddie, you doing alright man?” she asked. The others looked at him, their faces asking the same question.

“Yeah, I uh, think so, my head just kinda hurts like a bitch right now.”

“Damn, one of us can drive you to the ER if you want it checked out,” Alex offered. “Is your insurance good?”

“Yeah, I think it’ll cover it,” Eddie answered, still groggy.

“Oh yeah, Eddie, not sure if you noticed, but you got something on your chest,” Tracy mentioned. Eddie felt around his chest area, and found that there was a sticky note pasted on it. He tore it off and read what it had to say:

“Hey Ed, hope you’re alright when you read this. It’s too bad we weren’t able to talk more tonight, but I guess you couldn’t help it. Anyways, if you wanna come over some time to hear me play, feel free to shoot me a message :)”

-Martin

Underneath the signature, Martin had written in his phone number. 

“Huh, what fuckin luck…” Eddie said to himself.