Middle Aged Slumber Party #10

Christopher Pike's Slumber Party: Chapter Four

Hello, friends.

Welcome to the tenth installment of my deep dive into Christopher Pike’s Slumber Party, in which we get a flashback to THE INCIDENT!! (Dun dun dunnnnn!!!)

Want to start from the beginning?

Chapter One: Part One. Part Two. Part Three. Part Four.
Chapter Two: Part One. Part Two. Part Three.
Chapter Three: Part One. Part Two.

Subscribe to follow along, re-read the book if you’re feeling it, and for SURE, please tell me all about your memories of reading this way back when.

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Book cover: Scholastic Point edition of Christopher Pike’s Slumber Party

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“Why do I always have to baby-sit her?” Nell complained to her mother.

“Because she’s your little sister,” Mrs. Kutroff said, pulling the long Cadillac into Dana’s driveway. “You should be happy you have one.”

—Slumber Party, Chapter Four

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Scene One: In the car

Note: This ENTIRE chapter is in italics, I guess that’s how we know that it’s a dream/flashback. It’s ALSO a Very Dramatic choice, Emily Byrd Starr would approve.

The chapter opens with Nell, Nicole, and Lara being dropped off at Dana’s house for a sleepover by Nell and Nicole’s mother. Nicole is there not because she was invited, so much, but because Mrs. Kutroff is making Nell babysit her? AT A SLEEPOVER??? AT SOMEONE ELSE’S HOUSE???

The 80s were so weird, I swear.

Nicole forgot her toothbrush—if the older girls are ten, she must be, like, seven? eight? and kids that age are not traditionally known for their Stellar Packing Choices—and Mrs. Kutroff is like, oh, that’s fine, you can use your sister’s. Which goes over just as well as you’d think, considering that Nell is already pissed about the whole situation.

Lara, meanwhile, is stuck in the car with all of this, just trying to be polite and not do a Charlie’s Angel roll out the door. (I might be projecting a bit there—and quoting Veronica Mars, I think—but good grief.) Lara attempts to diffuse the situation by offering Nicole her own toothbrush, and the narrator also tells us that not only is Lara happy to have Nicole there, but that Lara also privately thinks that Nicole is more fun than Nell.

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Rachael and Mindy were already inside. Mindy had accidentally squished a piece of used bubble gum on the couch, and Dana was trying to get it off before her parents — who were watching TV upstairs — found out. Rachael was eating cake and cream, and drinking a can of Coke. She ate like a pig and never got fat. Lara knew that Rachael would be beautiful when she grew up. So would Nicole.

—Slumber Party, Chapter Four

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Scene Two: The wholesome part of the sleepover

The girls watch “a rented movie on a fancy projector”—Nell and Nicole’s parents brought it over earlier, because god forbid their daughters watch a VHS tape on a top-loading player like everyone else. They watch—I still can’t believe this, first, they are ten years old and second, I checked, and it came out in 1965, this is the weirdest 1985 sleepover EVER—DOCTOR ZHIVAGO, WITH OMAR SHARIF.

For real, here are a few movies that came out in 1984 (I went with a year before the book pubbed to account for some time for them to make it into video stores): Ghostbusters, Gremlins, A Nightmare on Elm Street, The Karate Kid, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Sixteen Candles, The Neverending Story, Footloose, Firestarter.

But these dorks are watching Doctor Zhivago?? And then squabbling about whether or not Omar Sharif, who I think was at least in his mid-30s when he was in DZ, was hot?

I really think this book is secretly set in the 70s at the LATEST—I double-checked, and Wikipedia says that the first video rental store in the US opened in December of 1977, so we can’t go earlier than that. Why am I trying to make this make sense???

All that said, I find all of the following hilarious, both because it’s pitch-perfect for the dynamics in this friend group and because it’s just funny, period:

When he visited Julie Christie in town, [Rachael] said that he was actually having sex with her. Rachael was sure of this although Lara did not think he would do such a thing. But she didn’t argue with Rachael. From listening to her talk before, it seemed Rachael really did know a lot about sex and who was doing it.

And then they play CHARADES, which if you weren’t already convinced that this was the ANCIENT PAST, you must be now, no? I don’t know, charades just seems like a game that kids play when adults are like HOW DO YOU DO FELLOW KIDS than a game that they’d play when left to their own devices? But, as always, maybe that’s just me.

Nicole is on Lara’s team because Nell is still mad that Nicole is even there; nice job driving a wedge between your kids, Mr. and Mrs. Kutroff. BUT!:

Nicole was on Dana’s and her side because Nell was still mad at her sister for having come. Too bad for their team. Nicole was better at charades than all of them put together. She seemed able to place the mystery word directly into their minds. Nell even accused her of cheating, she was so good.

IS NICOLE PSYCHIC WHAT IS HAPPENING

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Dana’s father came in and said that he was going to bed. He didn’t want them making a lot of noise or staying up late. After he left, Rachael said wickedly, “Now we can have some real fun.”

—Slumber Party, Chapter Four

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Scene Three: The grown-ups retire and the ten-year-olds throw a rager

The second Dana’s father heads to bed, Rachael squashes Dana’s hopes that there are boys coming over, and then goes for the liquor cabinet. (Lara, being the Good Girl, is grossed out by the idea of boys AND alcohol. And while I still think that Lara is a massive drip, I would have been right there with her at that age.)

Rachael promises that Dana’s father will never know, because they’ll refill the bottles with water, etc., etc., and drops the detail that she learned that trick from her older brother, which is PERFECT, because of course she did.

Lara gonna Lara, Rachael gonna Rachael:

“I don’t like alcohol,” Lara said.

“That’s because you’ve never been drunk,” Rachael said, uncapping a second bottle and sniffing the contents.

Nicole asks what being drunk is, Nell is nasty about it (and unintentionally hilarious):

“Don’t you know anything?” Nell said. “Drunk is when you have a hangover and you can’t drive and your head hurts.”

Rachael gives them all brandy—on ice—and Lara doesn’t like it and doesn’t want it, but drinks it and asks for more because she doesn’t want “to seem like a sissy.”

Nicole barfs, but maintains that she’s fine after.

So now they’re drunk and bored—always a great combo—and decide to HAVE A SEANCE.

With, you know, CANDLES.

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“What spirits would want to talk to six drunk girls?” Lara said, slurring her words.

“Get the board, Dana,” Rachael said, ignoring her.

—Slumber Party, Chapter Four

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Scene Four: LET’S BREAK OUT THE OUIJA BOARD

Mr. Pike describes the Ouija board as “Parker Brothers’ standard brown rectangular divining board” which made me laugh and also wonder if maybe there was some rule about mentioning specific products by name, but then a few pages later he calls it a Ouija board, so I guess he was just being fancy here?

Rachael sets up some candles in a “precarious circle” (FORESHADOWING), Nell tells Nicole she’s too young and Lara nopes out, so Rachael makes her take notes, which, again, I know she’s awful, but I can’t help but love her a little bit.

So, Mindy (who has had VERY little to do so far this chapter), Rachael, Dana, and Nell settle in with their fingers on the planchette. Rachael, of course, announces that she’ll do the questioning.

For a while, nothing happens.

Then it starts moving and answering questions about the girls’ futures and so on, and I SUSPECT—though I cannot prove—that the spirit is ACTUALLY Rachael. And maybe Nell, too, because the “spirit” says that Nell is going to write “the greatest mystery novel of all time” but it refuses to talk about Nicole’s future.

And then… things get weird.

Mindy starts getting freaked out and brings up The Exorcist—was this a thing? Did a lot of ten-year-olds watch The Exorcist??? I mean I was eight in 1985 and The Exorcist probably would have scarred me for life, but then again I was pretty sheltered, media-wise—which leads to this:

“Are there any evil spirits in the room?” Nell asked.

YES

“Really?” Rachael asked, frowning.

YES

“Are we in danger?”

YES . . . NO . . . YES . . . NO

“Who is the evil spirit?” Rachael asked. Something seemed to be distracting her. As she spelled out the letters, her voice was strained. “N — I — C — O — L — E. Nicole,” Rachael whispered, all eyes focusing on the young girl, whose lips quivered and hands trembled.

So, my take here is that Rachael was controlling it at first and then EITHER Nell took over to mess with her sister OR there is an actual woo-woo spirit in the room??? Or Nicole is not only psychic, but also telekinetic?? Or haunted by a poltergeist????

Nicole is clearly upset by all of this and asks them to ask again, so they do:

“Who’s the evil spirit in the room?” Rachael asked.

The planchette did not spell. It revolved until the sharp end was pointing at Nicole. Again Rachael frowned, seemingly on the verge of complaining. Mindy whistled. Nell chuckled. Nicole burst into tears.

Yeah, so due to the chuckle, my money’s on Nell, and Rachael’s pretty sure she’s doing it?

But then it REALLY all goes to hell.

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“I hate this!” Nicole cried, leaping to her feet, swatting the indicator away. Unfortunately, in doing so, her hand accidentally hooked the base of a double candleholder and dragged it toward her, off the table and onto the carpet. Maybe because they were all slightly drunk, no one reacted immediately. Nicole’s eyes widened with terrific surprise, and perhaps for an instant one could have thought she looked evil. Orange light played on her face. Smoke rose through her hair, a noise crackled at her feet, the stink of something burning filled the air.

—Slumber Party, Chapter Four

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Scene Five: In which we learn that Nicole is apparently dipped in paraffin

At first, the girls don’t realize that Nicole is on fire: Dana is more concerned about the carpet than anything, Nell actually slaps Nicole for being clumsy (Nell is AWFUL!!), and the others grab cushions and magazines to smother the burning rug, while Lara grabs the brandy decanter, planning to douse the flames… with alcohol.

And then Nicole starts screaming, because her bathrobe is decidedly NOT flame resistant. (Which, digression: If you’ve never rabbit-holed about the history of flammable clothing, hoo boy, it’s a scene.)

Nell, Dana, and Mindy all freeze.

Rachael springs into action, yelling at Nicole to roll on the floor—she’s all business, so she skips stop and drop—while she yanks at the sheet on the coffee table. Nell grabs Nicole, throws her on the floor, and starts trying to smother the fire WITH HER BARE HANDS!!!

The fire is almost out when Lara decides to be helpful…

…by emptying the brandy decanter all over Nicole:

For an instant the fire disappeared. Nell even stopped rolling Nicole and pulled back her hands. Rachael dropped her sheet. Dana and Mindy breathed sighs of relief. Lara smiled and smelled the empty bottle.

Then Nicole exploded like a Molotov cocktail.

Nell dives into the fire and everyone else is pretty useless (which, honestly, no shade, I absolutely am one of those people who entirely freezes in a crisis), and Christopher Pike starts jamming in literary flourishes left and right:

At once her hair disintegrated, her face lost in a closing hand of black smoke. She did not seem to feel pain or think of the consequences. Mindy fainted like a crumpling paper doll. Dana rammed both her fists into her eyes and began to gag. Nicole’s screams cut off like a power failure, sending a permanent darkness into Lara’s heart. Nicole lay still, no longer writhing. Lara stared at the empty bottle in her hand and thought of her terrible mistake.

SENDING A PERMANENT DARKNESS INTO LARA’S HEART

Rachael, again, acts practically, smothering the fire:

A putrid cloud of smoke choked the room.

But the damage is done.

Dana’s father arrives—wearing only his underwear, sadly Christopher Pike does not tell us whether or not he’s wearing tighty-whities, but that’s what I pictured—and he checks Nicole’s pulse and DECLARES HER DEAD????

Lara drops to her knees and begs Nicole to not be dead, and apparently Dana’s dad is NOT an EMT, because she is NOT dead:

And Nicole did stir, and did turn and look at her, with a single, bloodshot hazel eye. She had not heard the pronouncement clearly, but she had heard enough.

“I am going to die,” Nicole said.

Lara squeezed her hand. “I will not let you die.” It was a promise she swore she would keep. Even when Nicole’s eye fell shut and did not open again.

I don’t remotely understand how ten-year-old Lara thinks she’s going to do that, but I guess we can chalk that up to different reactions to a crisis and also, reminder to my judgey self, she’s ten.

FINALLY, Dana’s mother—I’m pretty sure this is the first time she’s been mentioned, I’d assumed it was just Dana and her dad—calls the paramedics.

And then the narrator tells us that Nicole lived a week at the UCLA Medical Center Burn Clinic:

There she caught an infection and all the parents, including Mr. and Mrs. Kutroff, thought it was probably for the best. She was buried in a large funeral in Oakland, and the mayor of the city came and said a few words. Thankfully, they left the coffin closed.

OMG CHRISTOPHER PIKE, THANKS FOR THAT LAST LINE, GOOD LORD.

Nell got lots of skin grafts.

None of the girls visited her, none of them called her.

She told her parents to tell them she never wanted to see them again.

But, hey, her parents didn’t sue anyone.

A month later, the Kutroffs moved away.

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Scene Six: Aftermath

I’m not completely clear on whether this means that everyone actually DOES blame Lara, or if she just assumes that everyone does:

Lara carried the blame alone, although accusing words were never spoken in her presence.

Dana can’t talk about it without crying.

Rachael is like, WELP.

Mindy has amnesia!!

Lara starts to descend into depression and borderline suicidal thoughts.

And then, six months later, Nell calls Lara and invites her over for the weekend:

Lara was a pale sack of bones; nevertheless she was shocked at Nell’s appearance. The initial skin grafts had focused more on replacing the skin than on what the skin looked like. Lara didn’t even recognize her. However, Nell’s spirits were excellent and more effective than a thousand hours of professional therapy. They talked late into the night. The incident was not dwelled upon, nor was it glossed over. Once Lara tried to apologize, but Nell made it clear that — in her own mind — it had been absolutely no one’s fault. She added, “Now we can all be friends again.”

Only once did they cry, reflecting on how beautiful Nicole would have been when she grew up.

PHEW!!!

That was… A LOT.

And now I want to rewatch Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II for the 900th time, purely because of the prom dress immolation scene???

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And that’s it for this round! More next Thursday.

Next up: The first part of Chapter Five, in which Lara overhears Rachael make a SUSPICIOUS PHONE CALL. Also, the boys show up, barf.

In the meantime, subscribe so that you don’t miss installments, let me know about your memories of reading (and watching!) horror as a tween and teen. I’m also always here if you’ve got recommendations.

Talk soon,
Leila