The Last Paragraph of Charles Wright's The Messenger
I didn't say anything. Suddenly I didn't care. All I wanted to do was sleep, but I knew I wouldn't sleep just yet. Tomorrow I'll sleep on the bus, but now Shirley and I will climb the stairs together, back to my drunken friends upstairs. The party had turned into a free-for-all; I could hear their voices wild above the music, searching for that crazy kick that would still the fears, confusion, and the pain of being alive on this early August morning.
"What's wrong?" Shirley asked. "Charles, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," I said. "Absolutley nothing."
We started up the stairs and then I heard Claudia's voice, as clear as day, scream, "C-----!"
