A sketchy hotel room was set on fire after students from the Global Grad Club, at Meadow Clark High School, stayed the night during their weekend tournament. The cause of the fire was ramen noodles that were placed in the microwave without any water.
On the way to the tournament the Beachliner bus was saturated with curse words, gossip, screams, arguments, and petty drama. Throughout the early morning bus ride many of the older students and the coaches tried to catch up on sleep; however they got woken up every couple of minutes after inhuman screeches left the mouths of the younger students.
This chaotic energy faded from the team through the first day of competition, but was gained back once they got to the hotel room.
When the students returned to the hotel room after the long day of competitions they began the ritual of getting ready for bed. Part of this ritual is making their dinner at 11pm. As they began microwaving, the ramen’s smoke escaped from the microwave and rose in front of their faces.
…the overpowering burnt plastic smell getting absorbed into their lungs and luggage.
The students frantically fanned out the room and opened the singular window and the door to the hotel hallway, but at that point it was too late. The whole hotel was able to smell the burnt noodles.
The head coach, Henry Strout, was woken up by the loud coughing fits of the students and was forced to get out of his warm and cozy spot he just found in bed. Even though he was upset by losing his comfort, no punishment was given to the students at the time.
He told the students that it was just another “life lesson”, but nothing else was inflicted. Aside from the shame and guilt, the students went punishment free.
Some of the students and the two coaches present were interviewed:
- Alissa Mannet (the one accountable)- “I swear to God I didn’t do it on purpose. It’s not my fault they don’t make the instructions legible.”
- Elyse Grote (captain)- “This is exactly why I didn’t want to be in their room. Now I look like a lousy captain because of their stupidity.”
- Henry Strout (head coach)- “This is what I get for putting my trust in academically smart students.”
- Betty Krager (assistant coach)- “We all knew this would happen at some point.”
After putting out the fire and attempting to fan out the room (where somehow the fire alarm magically didn’t go off) the students were forced to sleep in the smoke filled room with the overpowering burnt plastic smell getting absorbed into their lungs and luggage.
The following night, after finishing their final competitions, the bus ride home was worse than the bus ride there. The team’s sleep deprived state gave them delusional and disoriented energy. Once again screams and gossip filled the ears of those on the bus, but this time the main discussion was of the waterless noodles.
The ones who were victims to it, found it annoying and distasteful (literally) while the ones guilty found it to be a new funny story to tell.
The following Monday, the after-tournament meeting was held. Rather than addressing the obvious issues (the multiple students who caused problems during the trip), Mr. Strout gave a general speech about being respectful. The speech, going over most of the students’ heads, just gave the students another chance to act disrespectful to authority figures by being on their phones and not listening.
While the students got a short talking to, the hotels have become increasingly anxious during the school year. They plan to make rooms specifically for when school teams spend the night. The rooms are rumored to be fireproof, water proof, and sound proof (they’re based on asylum rooms).
The hotels claim the rooms are made to “benefit the guests’ experience”, so they can be as loud as they want during their late nights. However, multiple anonymous sources state the rooms are so the hotels can dodge any extra fees and damages the students may cause.
If you or any loved one’s you know plan on going on a trip any time soon make sure to look out for the school tournament schedules. You don’t want to be stuck with forty or more minors running around like a chicken without a head. It may be best to stick solely to summer vacations, but be cautious and warned for any school year trips you plan to take.
The Global Grad team from MCHS are looking forward to their next tournament after the holiday break! Hotels in the local area are rushing their construction plans for the asylum rooms to be prepared.
