He looked at his watch as he stepped through the doorway. “I said I’d be here at nine thirty.” I thought that was funny. It seemed like no one wore watches anymore. I remembered thinking I was cool when my older cousin, Jamie, had bought me a Relic watch when I was fourteen. I never touched it again after my parents gave me my cell phone.
“Yeah, but you’re always late,” I answered as I ducked into my room to get the rest of my stuff.
His answer was muddled but pretty much sounded like a denial. I pulled on my socks and boots and then headed to my bathroom to spray perfume and touch up my makeup. I wasn’t sure where Trent planned to take me. Probably some comic book store.
I threw on my jacket and we headed out. I was wrong about the comic book store, but where we ended up wasn’t much better.
“This is where you decided to take me?” I don’t think I could have guessed the Halloween megastore if I had been given ten chances, but there we were nonetheless.
“Sure. I know you don’t have a costume. Tonight’s as good a night as any to get yours,” he said, opening his car door.
“How do you know I don’t have one?” I climbed from the car and into the cool night temperatures.
“You mentioned it Monday when we saw that kid wearing a wolf mask outside the library.” He started walking toward the brightly lit Halloween store.
“So? I don’t need one. I’m not going to any parties this year.” I wasn’t overly sad about missing the campus parties. Last year I had gotten completely wasted after the third party of the night. Waking up in the living room of some frat house with vomit that you’re not entirely sure is yours is not the best feeling.
“I thought you said you were going to Woodfalls for the festival.” He opened the door of the store and a blast of warm air enveloped us as we walked in.
I didn’t answer him right away since I was awestruck. I’d never seen so many costumes. Aisles and aisles of them. I wondered why Cameo and I had felt the need to slave over making our own costumes when a store like this existed.
“You are going, right?”
“Huh?” I asked, running my fingers over a black wig that would have been perfect for my Cleopatra costume last year. Instead, I used temporary dye for my hair, which ended up dyeing my neck too.
Trent stepped in front of me, cutting off my view of the costume wonderland in front of me. “Halloween festival. Woodfalls?”
“I guess I’m going, but I didn’t intend to dress up.”
“You have to dress up,” he said, grabbing me by the wrist and leading me down one of the endless rows of outfits. “How about this one?” He reached into the rack and pulled out a short beer maiden’s costume.
“Did it two years ago, except my skirt was shorter.”
“Uh, of course it was,” he said, adjusting his glasses. I smirked at his reaction. His responses to some of my comments were flattering.
“How about this?” I asked, pulling on a mask from a popular slasher film franchise. Brittni and I had watched all the movies when we were freshmen. For months afterward, I would call her up and ask her in a creepy voice if she liked scary movies.
“The first movie wasn’t bad, but the rest were pretty ridiculous,” Trent said, handing me a fake butcher knife so I could get the full effect in a mirror at the end of our row.
“My mom probably wouldn’t be thrilled if I showed up to the festival wearing this.”
“No, but you’d get cool points from your brother.”
“Maybe I should get it for the snot runt.” I pulled the mask off and patted my hair back in place.
We rounded the corner into a new row that looked like Disney princesses had puked in it. “Wow, talk about princess fetishes.” I’d somehow been lucky enough to escape the love affair every girl seemed to have with wanting to be a princess.
Trent held up a yellow monstrosity of a dress. “What, you never wanted to be Belle?”
“No, thanks,” I answered disdainfully, leaving the aisle behind.
The next aisle was much more my speed. It was like a blast from cartoon heaven. Trent and I spent a good thirty minutes in the cartoon aisle trying on different masks and headgear. I couldn’t resist pulling out my phone and snapping a picture for Brittni of Trent wearing a Johnny Bravo mask. Johnny Bravo held a special place in our hearts. I posted the picture on Instagram also. I ignored the message section that showed I had more than a thousand comments on pictures I had posted.
The next few aisles were kid costumes, so Trent and I skipped over them. I couldn’t help giggling when he dragged me down a superhero aisle like a kid who had just spotted Santa Claus. His major geek came out when he picked up a Green Lantern ring and quoted something that sounded like a pledge.
“Do I even want to know how you knew that entire thing?” My attitude changed when I spotted a Princess Leia costume, complete with a freaking cinnamon roll–looking wig. I wasn’t much of a sci-fi nut, but I’d always been obsessed with Han Solo. Mom told me that when I was little they dug out my dad’s collection of action figures from when he was a kid and I instantly zoned in on the Han Solo and Princess Leia figures. I was like three at the time. I recently saw a movie with the guy who played Han Solo and he’s totally some old dude now. I can’t believe I had crushed on him so hard.
I held up the costume, which was completely impractical for Maine since the belly was bare and all, but I wanted it. Bad.