The party was only just getting started.
Taking a sharp inhale from the cigarette between my lips I look around me as I step through the terraced house that I have called home for the last two years.
Heading towards the front door of the property I reminisce on the thoughts of the previous nights of debauched revelry we have hosted. Our house parties have become events of legend amongst the local student community even if I do sycophantically think so.
My house mates and I have thrown parties for occasions such as Halloween and Christmas but sometimes just because it was the prospect of an otherwise mundane Saturday. We did not even know anywhere near three quarters of the attendees who would regularly turn up for the revelry that lasted long into the early hours.
Things had changed of late though, two-fold reasons to ease off on the extravagance. After three years of University living it had become time to knuckle down in the final semester to at least attempt to gain a grade worthy of the time invested. Like my housemates and all our friend's gainful employment and the harsh reality of the real world loomed large on the horizon. A vicious reality check to be forgotten about tonight on one last night of hedonistic pleasure with exams over and academia finally behind us.
"How you doing Dharms?" I offer slapping my house mate Dharmesh Singh heavily on the shoulder as I pass him in the hallway.
"Good... well no actually not fucking good" Dharmesh rather confusingly offers. "I knew she'd be fucking here."
Glancing across the already rapidly filling living room I spot at once who he refers to. Cassie Reynolds, his former girlfriend. Cassie was an intelligent sweet girl with a devilish streak. I had never had the heart to let Dharms know that Cassie and I had been close in our first year at university. As close as you could call the mutual benefits of being one another's fuck buddies. I had lost track of the number of times we would turn up at one another's doors at the end of night out for as we called it "old times sake." Nothing serious had ever come of our relationship, not least when Cassie had moved on to start dating the captain of the Rugby Team who despite being an arrogant prick was twice the physical size of me.
Dharmesh had started dating Cassie earlier in the year. A relationship that had barely gotten off the ground before spectacularly crashing and burning. He had never offered up to me the full details of what had transpired. From what our other housemate Dale had discovered Dharmesh had been mortified to have woken up in a bar after a particularly drunken night out to find Cassie being double teamed by two of the venues male bar staff. I guess not too many relationships survive such circumstances. Truth be told I had more envy for the barmen than I did sympathy for Dharmesh.
"Fuck her mate..." I offer negatively rather than in any kind of encouragement, "...move on...this place will be wall to wall within hours."
Stepping away, as in the moment I have extraordinarily little time to be drawn into Dharm's ruminating about the past. I live in the moment; I live for tonight. Not that I do not have my own plans for a blonde I have come close to but failed to land over the last three years. What will be though will be.
Heading out through the wide-open front door of the property I survey our kingdom. The small garden to the front of the property is full of attendees as is the pavement beyond, all of them making the most of the sun that bathes the front of the property. Looking along the street in both directions a steady trickle of friends, associates and outright strangers make their way towards the house. I grin like a Cheshire Cat, proud of the elevated social status
"One last night... one big fucking send off," I hear from over my shoulder.
Turning recognising his booming voice my grin doesn't fade as I turn to Dale, my housemate, and technically the first person I met at University. We have been inseparable ever since, despite his prevalent caustic personality traits.
"It's gonna be a good one... I can tell," I cheerily respond.
"Better fucking had be..." Dale offers coming to stand at my side and observe just as I do, "...in seven days time we pack up and move on... let's leave that shit head landlord with a legacy to clean up."
Dale's family were of money, that was a barely concealed secret. He wanted for nothing, dressed well if a little too casually all of the time, drove a new car and was never short of money and a quick phone call home remedied such problems if necessary. Girls seemed magnetised to his persona, yet he never bothered with relationships. Being Dale's Wingman for three years had certainly reaped its rewards.
"Watch out fun police on patrol," Dale offers as he nods to the property directly adjacent to ours.
The property that hadn't existed two years ago as the couple who live at the property step onto their drive towards their black BMW SUV.
The four detached houses on the opposing side of the street had been built and occupied towards the end of last summer. On returning from summer break the dynamic had aesthetically altered on face value but two weeks later on throwing our first social gathering of the academic year we realised just how much the overall dynamic had changed.
The police had arrived, in response to complaints about excessive noise and unruly behaviour not long after Ten o'clock, at such point the party had barely begun to get going. Although by time the same officers had arrived a little before midnight, alleging the same misdemeanours, behaviours had certainly deteriorated. The police could not and would not say from where the complaint had arisen. The silhouetted male figure in the upstairs window that observed the chaos that ensued was a significant reveal.
Chaos that had seen Dale arrested for affray during a heated, alcohol fuelled, confrontation. No charges had ever been made, thanks possibly to the intervention of Dale's Fathers Solicitor. A little over a month later our Halloween party had been similarly disrupted as had our Christmas party. The latter resulting in threat of eviction following complaints made to our landlord.
As a consequence all of the plans around subsequent social gatherings for which we had become infamous for had been shelved. Perhaps we might collectively scrape through graduation as a result, not that our focus for socialising had shifted to any other distraction.
"Watch this," Dale states tapping my upper arm with his right hand whilst raising a bottle of Vodka in salute with his left hand.
I turn to him unable to prevent the ill thought plan that that cannonballs into his mind.
"Hey neighbours..." Dale hollers across the street at them, "...Why don't you come join us later?"
The glare the dark haired thirty something male silently throws in our direction is palpable, even from a distance. Despite a look to her husband, and perhaps a word to placate him the attractive female doesn't respond.
"You're a twat Dale..." I offer shaking my head, "... Why poke the bear...looks to me like they're headed out... here's hoping they have a late one themselves."
The interference of our bitter neighbours was an expected threat to proceedings. A threat that was unavoidable but there was still no need to pour petrol on the flames I consider as my eyes fall upon the dark-haired female occupant of the property. Watching her as she slips into the passenger side of the vehicle without paying us any further attention.
"Probably already called in the disruption," Dale offers with contempt.
"Seven days before we move out..." I offer to remind him, "...who gives a fuck?"
"Miserable fucking bastards," Dale states as the SUV pulls away throwing two fingers in the air in their direction.
"Yeah but she's so fucking hot," I offer with a chuckle.
"Fire my friend..., white hot fucking fire," Dale confirms taking a swig from the bottle of vodka clutched in his hand.
