Party Bound

"Why not? You like me, don't you?"

"I like you, I really do, but something's really off here." Zipping my pants up. "I don't get it? Are you gay?"

"Jesus Christ No. But something in this house is wrong. Something is going on."

"You're freaking me out Josh, What's wrong?"

"For starters, I haven't seen you in 8 years and here you are, in this house, ready to fuck me. Second, if someone could explain the blood I keep finding in the bathroom, I just might be able to sleep easy. Third, it's always fucking freezing in this house and everyone's like, "Oh, the ceiling fans are on?" And last, I know it's not my business but I know there's something going on with you and Keith. So you know, a blowjob is nice and all but it's just, what's the phrase? Not the time or place?" She just sits there, with this stupid expression on her face as if I told her, her parents are dead. "I'll leave, I understand, Sorry Josh." And then she walked out. I stand there in path of a nasty draft. I'm shivering and decide to head in for the night.

It's 2 in the morning and I'm unable to sleep, between the storm brewing outside, I keep hearing strange noises throughout the house. People walking around, Cabinets opening and closing, the sound of glasses clanking and people whispering. I sneak out of bed and up to the door to lock it. At least with the door locked, I 'm able to sleep. For the past two nights, I sleep undisturbed and wake up refreshed. I have finally gotten used to the room and bed. Through the night, the snow builds and rises. Like a coffin slowly being closed.

Morning and the first thing I do are open up the curtains. White, everything is covered and buried in snow. The snow outside the window has risen to the sill outside the window. It's about 6 feet of snow and still coming down. I've learned to wear slippers in the morning so that I don't catch a cold. I hit the bathroom first, the skylight is covered and some snow is falling through. Somebody left the skylight open the night before and now the snow has made it's way in. I tug on the chain to close it but the space between the window and ceiling is packed with ice. The chain itself is cold as ice. I pull my robe tighter and walk out into the living room, the TV is on and Jesse is watching cartoons. "Hey, there's snow coming through the skylight in the bathroom, I tried to close it." I stand there waiting for a reply but she's silent, her back to me. I shrug and walk to the kitchen, there's no coffee made and everything is left out, even last night's dinner leftovers and dishes. Empty wine bottles and beer cans scattered across the counter top. I take a glance at the clock on the microwave; it's blinking 12:00. I shuffle back into the living room; Jesse is still glued to the TV. "Did the power go out last night or something?" No response. I move closer, right behind her. "HELLO!" She jumps, startled. "Ya? What is it? Sorry, no coffee this morning, we're out."

"It's not the coffee I'm worried about, is everything ok? Did the power go out last night?" There are deep bags under her eyes and she looks really pale. She's in a nightgown, and there's red dots matted on it, in a sort of pattern. Bare feet and still staring off into the screen, though it's muted. "I don't know, maybe, some weather," Finally she breaks her gaze and looks up at me. For a second, I'm creeped out by what I'm really looking at. She's lost a lot of weight and it shows in her face. "Hey, be a Hun and pass me a joint." I go through the mess of magazines on the coffee table and find a joint. I had it to her and there's a look of total torment. I walk away and head back to my room.

I knock on Keith's door and he answers in his boxers. "Hey man, what's up. What time is it?" By the way he looks and sounds, he's been up all night and very strung out. "Well, we got hit with a snow storm last night, the clocks are out of whack from the power outage that happened sometime during the night, and the skylight in the bathroom won't close."

"Did you try the chain?" His breath reeks of whiskey. "Yes, and the ice is making it impossible to close, just thought I'd tell you."

"Ya man, thanks, I'll have to go check that out."

"Is everything ok with you and Jesse, she looks like hell." Barely holding onto the door for balance, Keith nods and assures me. "She'll be fine, too much of the night life." He winks and slurs a little bit.

All morning, Cyndee is nowhere in sight, I've taken it upon myself to stay in my room. I try and call up Philly but all the lines are down. Right now, I'm just lying in bed, listening to the ceiling fan shake and the wind outside, blowing around. I'm not in the mood to write or do anything. I'm completely relaxed and I'm on the verge of dozing off. There's a loud crash of glass and I jump to my feet, slightly dazed. From the temperature in the hallway, I run into the bathroom, the skylight has caved in and there's glass and snow covering everything.

Snow is at full force, stinging my face. I close the door and Cyndee is standing in the hallway. "What happened?"

"Where's Keith?" I say rather harshly to Cyndee, because I'm pissed, he never got up to check it out the first time I told him. Now something that could have been avoided is now a big problem. "Hey Genius, open the fucking door, there's now a fucking hole in the ceiling." I'm banging on his door, "Hey!" I bang once more and head back to the bathroom. The snow isn't letting up and it's building up fast, some is moving out under the door. Cyndee is still standing by her door, gazing at me, totally zoned out. "I got to go on the roof and put something over the skylight. So if Keith decides to get up, tell him I could use and extra hand. And if I don't come back, don't bother looking till next spring." I'm actually fuming with anger and I'm sweating.

I have a pair of jeans with long johns on and my heavy coat, it's warm but being cold isn't my current situation, it's how I'm going to get out of the house is the problem. The patio is screened in but the winds have blown out portions of the screening. The screen door is packed in with 7 feet of snow. I drag an old bench to a side, where one of the screens is flapping in the wind, being careful; I step through to the outside. The snow is deeper than I thought, so it takes me time to get to the other side of the house. Standing outside Keith's window, I peer in. The snow is beating hard at my face; I can only tolerate a glimpse. Keith is on the bed with headphones on, Jesse is sucking him off. It's repulsive, so I understand; it's up to me to repair the skylight. I think about leaving as soon as it's possible to drive back on the roads, but then again, I have no car and the fact that I have to stay up here with them for another 2 months is more than I can bear. I feel trapped. Everyone is losing it. Not only is there a lack of responsibility but also there's a cloud of massive drinking and drugs usage between Jesse and Keith, Cyndee is unstable which makes the whole situation very dangerous. There's not telling how bad things are going to get it the snow continues.

Since the house is just one floor, it's going to be fairly easy getting to the roof. In order to get into the shed, I have to dig out the bottom, so I can get the doors open. The wind is so bad, I have to curl up and take a few breaths. I look back at the house and it's barely visible. Once I get the shed door open, I find the ladder in the back. It's damp and smelly but it's better than hanging outside, so I decide to wait until the wind dies down. I start to go through stuff and find a box of videos, mostly recorded tapes labeled, Touched by an Angel, Simpsons, mostly TV shows. A come across one or 2 tapes that are prerecorded, pornography. There's one labeled, ME and Josh/Prom. For a second or two, I just stare at it and try to remember but I don't, so I toss it back in the box. I find and old tarp, some screws, not nails but they should work all the same and an old hammer. After 20 minutes of sitting on a metal barrel of gasoline, I move out.

I use the tarp as a shield and make my way to the back of the house, the wind isn't too bad, and so I drag the ladder and prop it up along side the wall. Climbing the ladder itself is tricky, it's cold and my fingers are numb. I have to be careful, as to not getting ejected off the ladder by the wind, so I hold firm. The roof is fairly flat, so it's not too difficult walking around. The only problem is that when I walk, I can feel the roof moving in too. I find the bathroom skylight and peer down into the bathroom. Someone left the door open in the bathroom. I get to my knees and yell down. "Someone shut the fucking door!" No one answers the call and snow continues to fill the hallway. My last ounce of patience is lost and I hurry down off the roof. The tarp has blown into the woods, so I chase after it and drag it back. I haul back up to the roof with the tarp and the hammer. There's a point where I feel the roof caving in, slightly. I hurry back and call down the skylight again for them to close the door but nothing. I brush the snow away from the sides and begin to lay down the tarp. Once in place, I nail it down and secure the outside frame. Off the roof again, I take the ladder away and lay it along the wall.

The snow is starting to die down but the artic wind is making my movements slow and calculated. My original set of tracks is now covered. The sun is moving down over the mountains. The front of the house is getting hit pretty hard and most of the screens are now ripped completely open. Crawling back into the patio, I can't catch my breath. The door is locked. The wind is too much and the snow is draining my effort to yell. I knock at the door with the hammer, on the verge of collapsing. I get back into the house by smashing out a side window that oddly enough was my original room. It's stuffy and I rip off my coat and crash down on the bed. For a moment, there's only the sound of my heavy breathing. After a minute or two, I'm back to normal. Getting ready to get up, I hear thumbing noises next door. I think Keith and Jesse, then the more I listen, the more I realize, it's Keith and Cyndee, then I hear Jesse moan. There are simultaneous cries and moans. Equally confused and very fucking pissed off, I'm tempted to bust down the door and scream in all their faces. I slowly move through the house and get the draft of the bathroom. Some snow has melt and the hallway is soaked. I close the door and shovel snow away with my boot.

In the kitchen, sometime later, I find myself desperately trying to get in contact with someone. The radio is playing on faded voices talking about the weather and how it's going to be another 24 hours till conditions improve. I sit at the table, still trying to gain control and sense of the recent events. I'm the only one who realizes the seriousness of the situation at hand. I have to act but I'm helpless. How long can I possibly stay locked in my room. The TV is affected too, the picture on every station is faded with static and the sound is close to shit. I pace in the living room and watch as the patio becomes obliterated by snow and ice. The sun is wiped from the sky by 5pm. Neither Keith nor the girls have been out and about for sometime. No sounds. Not a peep. I walk down the hall and hear nothing. I knock on Keith's door and there's no answer.

My room is sealed tight but I'm worried about the tarp holding up in the bathroom. For hours, I listen for the possibility of someone laughing or yelling. As time passes, I become tense, the snow, and the silence. The feeling of the lid closing is too much to bear. I gain the will to bang on the door again. No one. I go to Cyndee's room and there's no one in there either. The rest of the house is empty. I run back to Keith's door. I turn the knob and it's locked. "I'm going to bust down the door, someone say something!" I'm actually pleading. "For Christ sakes, Keith, open the fucking door!" I throw myself against the door, a dozen times. Finally, it's crashes down and no one is there. The bed is made but there's clothes scattered everywhere. There's a really eerie quietness in the house that unnerves me. I start to shake. There's a loud crack outside and the lights start to die from room to room. I'm in the hallway and there's a domino affect on the house, light from light. Everything blackens and I freeze. Just the sound of wind picking up and snow battering the windows. It's subzero temperature and my breath is visible. Moving across the living room in pitch black, a low thumping noise echoes through the darkness. As I get closer to the front, I realize it's the front door. About to open it, another sound explodes outside, this time, outback. There's light pouring through the windows. The hallway is lit but I trip on some ice that has formed in the hallway. My knee hits hard into the wall and I topple over as the sharp pain shoots up my side. I manage to hop into my room and look out. The shed is covered in flames and pieces of debris is scattered around the yard on fire. The wind lets loose it's last attempt to take apart the house and while looking out the window, I see the tarp go sailing by. It triggers to me and I limp to the bathroom. When I open the door, a wall of snow crashes down on me. Lying there, I just want to stay put and not move. This isn't real, what the hell is happening? Everything is moving too fast. I pull myself out of the snow and crawl out of the hallway. I can't feel my body; I'm loosing consciousness and end up behind the couch. The last thing I hear is the dull thumping at the door and then nothing. I drift away.

The sun hits my face and the warmth it gives me is nothing I've ever felt in my life. In a way I'm saved. There's a thin coating of snow on the floor. My knee is throbbing, I cringe with every movement. I make my way to the kitchen sink and take handfuls of water. With my leg resting up on the counter, I push my pant leg up; my entire knee is purple and swollen. I'm feeling the pain now because the snow last night numbed me to a point of hypothermia. The snow has stopped and sun is shining. I notice also that the ceiling fans have kicked on again. From the kitchen window, I stare, Outside isn't what I remember it being. Mountains of snow and everything else is gone, the car, the road, and Most of the trees are knocked out. The radio plays easy and the forecast is said to be sunny and that the worst of the snowstorm is over. After wrapping my knee, I grab a shovel from one of the storage closets and go to work.

All morning, I try to shovel out the snow to the best of my abilities. I open the front door and relieved, I find nothing there. It takes more than an hour to shovel the snow out off the patio and fix the screens with a staple gun. Once all the doors are locked and the snow is cleared out, I head outside. The backyard is trashed with debris and other pieces of tool equipment. There's a black pit where the shed used to be. The rest of the house appears to be undamaged. For another 40 minutes, I try to uncover the car. The fact that driving out of here is impossible makes me sick, at least not until I few more days, Will I be able to get the hell out of here, that's if the snow stops long enough for me to do so.

The rest of the day, I sleep away in my room. When I wake up, there's a man in uniform carrying me outside. I 'm drowsy but I manage to mumble a few lines. "There's others, I can't find them…." I fade out again.

Back in Philly a week later, I find myself constantly drifting in thought. There are no words I can speak, nothing I can write to express what I feel. If there are big plans for everyone and everything serves a purpose, what was the point to those 2 months I was out there in the mountains? Was this supposed to be a lesson? Nothing made sense now that I look back on it. It feels like a dream, that or my mind is trying to forget.

They found Keith tied to a tree in the surrounding woods, beaten to death and Jesse was found, out by the lake, with her throat cut open. With all their efforts, they never found Cyndee. Weeks passed, when reports came in about a body being discovered a few miles southeast from the house, the authorities were fast to identify the body, a woman in her late 20's. She was identified as Cyndee Norsfield. Her picture is flashed all over the News and other reports. Something in me sinks deep, when I realize this girl looks nothing like the Cyndee who was staying in the cabin with us. I call the stations to verify things, the body was identified by her parents and the girl found in the mountains was in fact is the real Cyndee Norsfield. Staring into the screen at a total stranger, something in me dies.