your costumes already?” I asked Nate and Claire as I shoved my amazing present into the narrow locker.
“ Yeah, we got them last night. I had to make a few arrangements, but they’re ready for tonight. Ah!” she squealed. “I’m so excited!”
Avan and I had decided to be the characters of one of our favorite movies, The Nightmare before Christmas . He was Jack; I was Sally.
The rest of the day went by without mishaps. In fact, a lot more people I had anticipated approached me to tell me how excited they were about the party. Everyone knew my Mom’s amazing party skills.
I didn’t want to go home right away after school, and so I drove around for a while. The windows down and the cool air making my hair flutter all over my head. It was when I came to the corner of Mills Boulevard and Richmond Road that I saw him, the boy from my dreams. He entered a dark alley behind the McDonald’s. It couldn’t be, he wasn’t real just a figment of my imagination.
I drove by slowly, looking deep into the alley, but he wasn’t there. Only the large garbage bins against the buildings. Why did this keep happening? I sighed and decided to forget all about it. I would go home and start getting ready for tonight. My nerves lessened only a little bit as excitement overcame me.
* * *
I grabbed the makeup bag from the front seat and fumbled in my purse for my keys. With them in hand, I walked up the four steps to the wraparound porch and unlocked the door. Mom must be running behind, because there were no decorations outside. Still looking down at my purse, I closed the door behind me. Then I looked up and gasped.
Mom had really done a fantastic job decorating inside. All the pumpkin lights were strung up around the threshold, and the Grim Reaper’s robe was billowing in the breeze from a small fan underneath. That must have been Dad’s idea—he was always clever that way. The snack table was set up with all the fake body parts and food made to look like guts and slimy things. I was a bit surprised that it was so quiet, though—they were probably waiting somewhere to jump out and scare me. They always got into a festive mood for my Halloween birthday party.
Then, amid the orange crepe paper decorations in the far corners of the living room, I noticed something strange. By the fireplace, standing stock-still, was a red-haired woman with a black panther beside her. My stomach made a back flip at the sight of the animal. It did look just like the one I had seen below my window.
I shook off the feeling that took over me. Mom must have hired entertainment, I thought. A smile started to form on my lips. How cool! I took a few steps forward, my eyes on the panther. It wasn’t on a leash, which I thought strange—even maybe a little dangerous.
The woman looked at me without saying a word, as if studying my every move. I looked around to see horrible red stains all over the walls and furniture. Just as quickly as I had noticed the stains, my heart sank to the bottom of the deepest sea.
I finally realized why it was so quiet.
Dad was lying on the couch, his clothes soaked in blood. His neck was torn apart. Was this a costume? It looked too real. My breathing started to fail me, and my head started to spin. Then I noticed Mom, crumpled face down on the floor, also bloodied. She was not in a natural position.
I couldn’t speak. My knees went numb, and the tears blinded me.
It couldn’t be . . . My parents were dead.
How? Why?
I felt my heart and mind shatter. I looked through my tears at the woman and let out a little moan. She looked at me with the most unnatural I smile I had ever seen. I took a step forward, ready to rip her to shreds.
Her finger tapped the panther, and in response it bared its teeth and moved toward me. It had been crouched about twenty feet away, but it was across the room in an instant, close enough for me to reach out and touch, its long, yellowed canine teeth bared.
Was I going to die,
“ Yeah, we got them last night. I had to make a few arrangements, but they’re ready for tonight. Ah!” she squealed. “I’m so excited!”
Avan and I had decided to be the characters of one of our favorite movies, The Nightmare before Christmas . He was Jack; I was Sally.
The rest of the day went by without mishaps. In fact, a lot more people I had anticipated approached me to tell me how excited they were about the party. Everyone knew my Mom’s amazing party skills.
I didn’t want to go home right away after school, and so I drove around for a while. The windows down and the cool air making my hair flutter all over my head. It was when I came to the corner of Mills Boulevard and Richmond Road that I saw him, the boy from my dreams. He entered a dark alley behind the McDonald’s. It couldn’t be, he wasn’t real just a figment of my imagination.
I drove by slowly, looking deep into the alley, but he wasn’t there. Only the large garbage bins against the buildings. Why did this keep happening? I sighed and decided to forget all about it. I would go home and start getting ready for tonight. My nerves lessened only a little bit as excitement overcame me.
* * *
I grabbed the makeup bag from the front seat and fumbled in my purse for my keys. With them in hand, I walked up the four steps to the wraparound porch and unlocked the door. Mom must be running behind, because there were no decorations outside. Still looking down at my purse, I closed the door behind me. Then I looked up and gasped.
Mom had really done a fantastic job decorating inside. All the pumpkin lights were strung up around the threshold, and the Grim Reaper’s robe was billowing in the breeze from a small fan underneath. That must have been Dad’s idea—he was always clever that way. The snack table was set up with all the fake body parts and food made to look like guts and slimy things. I was a bit surprised that it was so quiet, though—they were probably waiting somewhere to jump out and scare me. They always got into a festive mood for my Halloween birthday party.
Then, amid the orange crepe paper decorations in the far corners of the living room, I noticed something strange. By the fireplace, standing stock-still, was a red-haired woman with a black panther beside her. My stomach made a back flip at the sight of the animal. It did look just like the one I had seen below my window.
I shook off the feeling that took over me. Mom must have hired entertainment, I thought. A smile started to form on my lips. How cool! I took a few steps forward, my eyes on the panther. It wasn’t on a leash, which I thought strange—even maybe a little dangerous.
The woman looked at me without saying a word, as if studying my every move. I looked around to see horrible red stains all over the walls and furniture. Just as quickly as I had noticed the stains, my heart sank to the bottom of the deepest sea.
I finally realized why it was so quiet.
Dad was lying on the couch, his clothes soaked in blood. His neck was torn apart. Was this a costume? It looked too real. My breathing started to fail me, and my head started to spin. Then I noticed Mom, crumpled face down on the floor, also bloodied. She was not in a natural position.
I couldn’t speak. My knees went numb, and the tears blinded me.
It couldn’t be . . . My parents were dead.
How? Why?
I felt my heart and mind shatter. I looked through my tears at the woman and let out a little moan. She looked at me with the most unnatural I smile I had ever seen. I took a step forward, ready to rip her to shreds.
Her finger tapped the panther, and in response it bared its teeth and moved toward me. It had been crouched about twenty feet away, but it was across the room in an instant, close enough for me to reach out and touch, its long, yellowed canine teeth bared.
Was I going to die,
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