In the Toledo park with big forest green trees, I had just spent the bright, sunny day with my aunt, uncle, and cousins. As we headed home, I saw a text from my mom on my uncle’s black phone. I picked up my glossy phone to see if my mom had texted me, too, but I had not received anything. Driving the car, my uncle had my aunt pick up the phone. I no longer could see it. Little did I know, a big surprise awaited me.

            Seeing a huge ruby red Suburban in our driveway that wasn’t ours left me with suspicion.  My aunt and uncle dropped me off, and they slowly drove away. Walking up to the front door, that’s when I should’ve known something was out of place. I saw people running around my house through the small window in the door. They tried to whisper, but in reality they were just yelling. Slowly shuffling in, many of my peers yelled, “Surprise!” Stumbling in shock and surprise, I stood speechless. My face turned bright cherry red in the process, and I had no idea what to say.

            One of my dad’s friends, Jaime Hohenberger, gave me a present wrapped in a plain, matte black garbage bag. In the living room, I tore open the thin black rubbery plastic, and this was when everything went downhill like a ski slope. Aggressively ripping open the bag, gritty goldfish crackers poured out all over the floor. As soon as this happened, almost all of my foolish peers surrounding me grabbed handfuls of the new goldfish and started throwing them at each other. Surprised, I turned cherry red once again from embarrassment at how immature my friends were acting. Fourteen and fifteen-year-olds throwing goldfish crackers at each other turned out to be quite a ridicules scene to watch. Grabbing a hefty handful of crackers, Logan Schlachter chucked them at Jaime.  Turning as red as a firetruck, Jaime did not think very fondly of this and angrily asked, “Really!?”

Logan came back at him and arrogantly asked, “What are you going to do about it?”

“What?” Jaime scowled. “Do you think you’re better than me, Schlachter?”

Logan didn’t answer, but tension floated in the air. Jaime looked like he really wanted to come at him and grab his scruffy neck. Walking out the clear sliding back door, Jaime met with the parents in the backyard. This is only half of the fiasco that Logan caused.

            Later, we went outside and set the volleyball net up, played basketball, and jumped on the trampoline like gymnasts. Everything seemed to be fine until we all settled down and sat around the warm campfire and watched the scorching red coals glow while the smell of dry campfire wood burned. Outside by the fire, everyone started criticizing each other, and Nathan Vold didn’t think very fondly of one of Logan’s comments. Nathan stood up and could’ve run at him like a charging bull, but he instead brought his fists up and yelled, “Bring it, Logan!” Logan then stood up and bolted at Nathan in a full sprint. Nathan, who looked determined, tried to olay Logan to the side, which didn’t work as he still went down with a thundering thud. At that point I should’ve stopped it, but I had no idea what to do. From there on it turned into an all-out brawl. Yelling and screaming, everyone in the yard could be heard for miles. I thought to myself, ‘What a disaster!’ Nathan tried to get up, but Logan held him down. It was nonsense. Everyone tried to break them up by grabbing their dirty, mangled bodies. After breaking up the fight, all of my other friends stared at the two boys, who looked like they had just gone through a war with their dirt-stained skin and bloody arms.  

The kids called their parents to ask to get picked up. I thanked everyone for coming, and once everyone left, the party was over. This would be my first and last birthday party ever held with my friends.