Billy and Arush, two of his friends from school, walked into the house, without being invited and without Nathan expecting them.
"Hey, Nate!" Billy shouted. "You home, buddy?"
From his perch in the holiday arrangement of greenery, mouse Nathan got a good look at his enormous buddies.
"If he'd answer our texts, we'd know," Arush said, glancing at the phone held in his hand.
"He told me he would have the house to himself for a few more days," Billy said. "Don't know about you, bro, but sounds like a perfect place to hold a party before everyone scatters with their families for the holidays."
Nathan did remember the conversation, but he had not given any indication he would be willing to risk the ire of his parents by hosting a party while they were out of town. Not that such details ever mattered all that much to Billy.
Nathan had known Arush longer, having met the Indian-American boy in second grade when Arush and his family moved to town. "Well, I don't think anyone's home," Arush said. "Feels wrong to stay."
"Chill, man," Billy said. "I am going to run upstairs to his room. You wait here."
Nathan squeaked in protest, wishing they would just go already. His tiny squeak went unheard as Arush settled onto the sofa and Billy bounded upstairs.
Nathan was debating his options. Should he try to contact his friends or just stay in hiding?
His decision got made for him when he lost his grip on the twig and fell with a soft "thwump" onto the living room carpet. A startled Arush saw the entire incident, but it took him a moment to register that he had seen a tiny white mouse fall out of a holiday floral arrangement.
He got off the sofa and walked across the room. Although the carpet cushioned his footsteps, his sneakers still produced vibrations that mouse Nathan could feel through his entire body.
"You OK, little guy?" Arush said, peering down with his concerned deep brown eyes at the little mouse.
Nathan was still recovering from the plunge to the carpet when Arush cupped his hands around him. "Little mice don't belong in the house," he said.
With the mouse trembling in his hands, Arush had to nudge at the door with his elbow, but he managed to push it open. He stepped onto the porch. Kneeling down, he opened his hands and let the little mouse drop onto the grass growing on the lawn bordering the porch. "There you go, little guy."
"No!" Nathan squeaked. Before he could stop Arush, the teenager turned his back and stepped back inside the house. Nathan saw the top half of the door swing back into place as Arush closed it behind him.
He had just been evicted from his own home by one of his best friends!