Guess who joined the party

It was my birthday and I was going to have the best party ever; everything was ready and I was going to have all my friends represented at the party. It was going to be the talk of the school and anyone who cared for me and knew me even would not want to miss this or so I imagined.

Casey was my best friend and she had been for as long as I could remember, we had shared many memories together and my 16th birthday would have been one of the most epic celebrations. We had planned it since we were 9 and although my birthday came first, we had decided to keep mine to a 50% high so she also could enjoy a 50% high and that way, everyone could walk away happy, glad we had made our dreams come true.

It happened about ten months ago, Casey was out late one night when she had the most terrible experience ever; she lost her phone and lost her way. She never came home that night and for a town that small, everyone wondered where she was. Her parents were worried and so was I, my best friend was missing and no one knew what had happened. Nothing could replace the shock we all felt when the police finally came with some word, no news was good news, right? But I would have gladly lived with no news than hearing what my ears caught that day: Casey was lost, never to be found again and that took the life out of me.

At the party, there was a man who looked suspicious and a teenager who seemed awfully close to this guy, everyone at the party wondered how he came to be there but no one questioned it as it was a party and the whole school was invited. You're probably wondering how I skipped out on that? Well, I came down with the flu and could not stand to be outside, what's a party without fun and drinks; both of which I could not have because of this stupid cold. I felt terrible every day and it only got worse on the day of the party, I had to sit this one out. I begged Casey to stay with me, but she just wouldn't barge and before I knew it, my phone was buzzing with messages; she was having a good time and she wished I could be there to enjoy it too.

After a while, she sent a message that the party was over and she was probably going to catch a ride with Jack and Kim who lived in the same neighborhood as Case and I and that's the last I heard from her. I mean, I went to bed early that night and hoped the cold would be gone by morning so I could make my comeback at the next party. Who would have thought the cold would be the least of my worries after that night and that my whole world would be turned upside down?

I came this close to losing my balance when the Chief mentioned Casey was not the only kid who got lost that night. Apparently, there was a good number of students from that party who never made it home that night and this was pretty alarming, there was never anything to suggest that the people of Chestnut were in any danger. The look on the Chief's face is still buried deep in my mind, he looked scared and confused, like for the first time, he didn't know what to do and that was not a good look on him. If he was scared and afraid, how would we feel? Was there any hope for Chestnut?