What I Wish Happened

It was a warm summer evening, and the party was in full swing. We had just finished my final exams and were looking forward to celebrating with friends. The year had been difficult for everyone, so we were all excited to let off some steam. As I walked through the door, the sound of music and laughter greeted me. The basement was dark, but colored lights filled the ceiling. It was packed wall to wall with people. The mood was light, and everyone was in high spirits.

I spotted my best friend Jack across the room and greeted each other with a hug. Jack had been through a tough time lately, and I knew this party would be good for him to take his mind off things. We chatted and caught up on everything that had happened since the last time we saw each other. We danced throughout the night. He seemed to be in good spirits, and I was happy to see him smiling. Eventually, we split up and each went off with other friends.

As the night went on, I kept an eye on him from the other side of the room. I noticed that Jack had been drinking quite a bit. He was laughing louder and acting more recklessly. He was also stumbling and slurring his words. I knew that he had a tendency to get too drunk, and I didn’t want to see him behind the wheel of a car. I approached him and asked him if he was okay, and he said he was fine. I suggested that he spend the night at the party or that I could give him a ride home, but he insisted on driving himself home.

I didn’t want to ruin his night, so I didn’t push too hard. But as he was getting ready to leave, I felt a pit in my stomach. I knew I had to do something, but I didn’t know what. I decided I needed to stop him. I went up to him and took his keys. I called him an Uber and I made sure he got into the car safely.

As I watched the Uber drive away, I felt a sense of relief. I knew I had made the right decision, even though it wasn’t easy. I knew he would get home safe. I couldn’t live with myself if something had happened to him or someone else on the road because of my inaction.

The next day, I received a call from Jack, thanking me for stopping him from driving under the influence. He told me that he had a lot to think about and that he would try to change his ways, it was a wake-up call for him. From that day on, he never drove under the influence again. It was a hard lesson, but it was worth it to keep him and others safe on the road.

But that’s not what actually happened.

This is the real story.

As the night went on, I noticed that Jack had been drinking quite a bit. He was laughing louder and acting more recklessly. I knew that he had a tendency to get too drunk, and I didn’t want to see him behind the wheel of a car, but didn’t do anything. I figured someone else would tell him to slow down or take his keys. I didn’t want to ruin the party.

As he was getting ready to leave, I felt a pit in my stomach. I knew I should do something, but I didn’t know what. He stumbled up to me and said he was leaving. I told him that he really shouldn’t drive home. But I didn’t push too hard. I watched him leave and I just stood there.

It wasn’t until the next morning that I heard the news. Jack had been in a terrible accident. He swerved off the road. He didn’t make it. He crashed and died for something I could’ve prevented. I could have said something, I could have done something, anything. Instead, my friend was dead.

From that day on, I made a promise to myself to always speak up and take action to prevent someone from driving drunk. Not only that, but I would educate and remind others to stop people from driving drunk as well. It’s not always easy, but it’s important to be responsible and look out for the safety of others, even if it means potentially ruining a good time. It might just save someone’s life.