Personal Narrative On Hookah

on a shady and bitter January night, five of my friends and I are enjoying a pleasant hookah. Sitting in my friend’s apartment basement chitchatting about school, life, and other topics that irritates us. Imagine a room with one light bulb, six seats around, and a table. My friend’s basement reminded me of an interrogation room. None of us knew what we were in for that night. We were still at a young age where we were not supposed to be smoking hookah. What we did is what any other teenager did, we lied to our parents. I told my mom that I’m going to Hussein’s house to play Xbox, Moe told his father he was at my house playing Xbox, Hussein told his mom he was at my house playing Xbox, and Ibby told his mom he was at Moe’s house playing Xbox.
Our other friend’s Nick and Eric didn’t have strict parents and they didn’t care what they did. Although lying is one of the worst things to do, we did it. I know lying will always come back and bite me right where it hurts. Lying is the easiest way to lose somebodies trust. The worst thing to me is to lose my mom’s trust. Losing my mom’s trust is like losing a wallet with a ton of money in it. You might get the wallet back but probably without the money. I’d get my mom to forgive me but I won’t get her trust back. Hookah was the latest “trendy” thing back in sophomore year. We sat Smoking our lungs out for two whole hours. The consequences of smoking is terrible; we knew smoking causes cancer. The hookah tobacco burned out and it was time to clean up our mess and leave no evidence behind. My friends and I cleaned up the basement as if we were trying to cover up a crime scene. By the time we were done cleaning the basement looked as spotless as a church or mosque. Hussein turned off the light and we headed out to drop off Eric and Nick. Hussein, Moe, Ibby, And I live on 99th and Harlem. We started out journey to 95th and Melvina. A frigid night, the temperature was 33 degrees Fahrenheit. Ibby complained “Do we really have to walk them home right now? It’s too cold I don’t have my jacket.” Hussein looked at him with a blank stare and told him “stop bitching, we’re not letting them walk home alone. It’s late as hell and it’s too dangerous.” Ibby was bound to catch the flu because he was wearing autumn weather clothes. I was bundled up. I looked like the kid from A Christmas Story with the big jacket on. A cozy, red jacket with black lining running through the middle of it. Also a navy blue and orange Chicago Bears hat. My friends and I marched, taking shortcuts to get to Oak Lawn faster. The time was nine thirty, our parents were bound to call us soon so the clock was ticking and we had to travel faster. Hussein, Moe, Ibby and I were neighbors each living blocks away from each other. We weren’t supposed to even leave the area. Taking about half an hour to walk to 95th and Melvina, we dropped Eric and Nick off by panda express. Shaking up telling each bye, Eric looks at us and uttered “Text me when you guys get home.” Hussein being the tough guy and smart ass he is says “Bro don’t worry about us. If someone tries to mess with us we’ll let them know what’s up.” The irony is yet to come. Strolling down 95th street back towards are homes, Ibby was hungry and asked “Can we stop at Billy boys?
I’m starving and I didn’t eat anything all day.” So we passed up Billy boys and stopped in there to grab some burgers and fries. Moe didn’t have any cash on him but he had a Tilted Kilt gift. He scurried across the street to grab a meal and we told him to call us when his order is ready so we can head out. As Hussein, Ibby, and I waited for Moe to call us, we demolished our sandwiches. A juicy cheeseburger stacked with lettuce, tomatoes, ketchup, and onions. The burger was heaven in my mouth. Hussein was in a joking mood and he really likes playing jokes on people. He tells me “Yo call Eric and tell him we got jumped.” I told him “No man, that’s not funny. What if it really happens?” Hussein says “Dude you overthink think everything. Just have some fun and do it.” So being the idiot I am, I did it. A decision I know I will regret for a long time. Waiting for a reply from Eric, Moe calls and tells us to come by Tilted Kilt so we can head home. We leave Billy Boys and cross the street by 95th and Ridgeland. Next to Tilted Kilt is a bus stop and on that bus stop is a group of twenty to twenty five people waiting. Teenagers just a little bit older than us, they looked like they were up to no good. I had a strange feeling about them so I demanded “Guys lets walk down Ridgeland instead of walking down 95th. One day Hussein’s tough act was going to get us in trouble and today was the day. “No man stop being scared, they’re not going to do
anything.” Of course we walk down 95th and before we know it a mob of people are running towards us. The moment happened so fast and they were questioning us. “Are you in a gang? What gang you rep? Let us get your wallet. How much money you got?” I answered “I don’t gangbang. I don’t have money on me.” When they took their attention of me I quickly slid my brand new Samsung galaxy s3 into my pants; if they go through my pockets they won’t find it. It’s funny because when we were in Hussein’s basement it reminded me of an interrogation room and now we are getting interrogated. My friends and I didn’t know what to do. We were frightened and terrified. My first instinct was to run but I didn’t. We were trapped by a group of twenty, maybe more. What were we supposed to do? The moment got intense and before we knew it we were getting hit and robbed. Luckily I slipped away from the action. I ran back to Tilted Kilt, jeans ripped, blood dripping down my arms and legs as if I were in war. I stop by a lady and screamed “PLEASE CALL THE COPS! MY FRIENDS ARE GETTING JUMPED!” I was safe in tilted kilt but now I was split apart from my friends. I waited inpatient for the police to arrive so I can explain everything. The mob of teens ran and split apart but some of them were stupid enough to return to the scene. The police arrive, I explain everything, they catch four of the twenty kids, and they find my friends darting past buffalo wild wings. The teens had took Hussein’s fries. They also took Moe’s phone, his food, and his wallet. The cops demand us to go back to the police station with them and that’s when we knew we were screwed. Our parents would have to come pick us up and they would find out we lied to them. The trust of our parents went right out the window and so did our privileges. Although they were a bit sympathetic since we got jumped, they still went on a yelling spree. I was grounded for a month, Hussein wasn’t allowed to leave his house for two months, Ibby wasn’t allowed to talk to us anymore, and Moe slipped away without consequences. I chose this story because it taught me a lot. I learned from mistakes and I haven’t lied to my mom since then. It taught me right from wrong. This situation honestly scarred me. It showed me that not everybody in the world his good intentions. Also it taught me to watch my back everywhere I go and not to trust anybody. We lied to our parents and we got hit hard with the consequences. This is something that still impacts me every day because when I’m about to do something stupid, I remember this situation. It helps me make the right decision. The truth will always come out sooner or later so don’t lie.