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A Proper Halloween

The rediscovery of a father's favorite holiday

By Bryan WarrickPublished 2 years ago 23 min read
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Photo/Bryan Warrick

Three rotting zombies were desperately climbing out of a dead, dry grass. Cracked tombstones, half-buried in thick cobwebs and dried autumn leaves, marked their former resting places.

“I bet that place gives out full size candy bars,” Steve said. The mannequins, looking buried to the waist, were made up with torn clothes and fake blood. “Any house putting that much work into their Halloween decorations understands what the holiday is about.”

“We have to stop there, Dad!” Terry cried out from the back seat. The SUV drove past the haunted house, but the boy continued to watch it with bright excitement.

Meghan looked back to her son. “Just as long as you don’t get too scared, honey,” she said.

Terry rolled his eyes and went back to admiring the horrific scene. He was only eight years old but already acted like he knew everything about everything. What will he be like as a teenager? Meghan wondered with dread.

The family’s destination was just a few houses down from the zombie infestation. Unlike the neighbor, Grandma’s house did not have the most impressive decorations out for Halloween. In fact, most people would be hard pressed to call the place decorated at all.

The house was a nice-looking ranch, but the holiday spirit was utterly lacking. Sitting on the porch was a single unlit Jack-o-Lantern and a single black plastic bat hanging upside down next to the front door.

Meghan’s heart sank at the sight as they pulled in the driveway. This isn’t how it should be, she thought. Not today.

For many years, her parents’ house had been a place of endless fun and good times on Halloween. It had been the day of days in her childhood year. Even Christmas played second fiddle. The decorations had always matched that passion for the holiday.

That’s not the case anymore, Meghan thought gloomily.

“It’s okay. The rest of the neighborhood looks like fun!” Terry said. Steve smacked him gently on the back of the head.

“No, he’s right, Steve,” Meghan said with a sigh, slowly shuffling toward the door. “This place has seen better Halloweens.”

“I remember,” her husband said.

“What happened?” Terry asked.

The parents exchanged a brief, hesitant look. Meghan started to say something, but the words froze in her throat. Finally, Steven spoke.

“After Grandpa Bradley died,” he answered in a hushed voice. “Grandma Rose didn’t really want to bring out all his Halloween stuff. It… well, it made her miss him, and feel sad.”

“Oh,” the boy said. He nodded sincerely. “Okay.”

Grandma answered the door, greeting everyone with the biggest smile.

“You get bigger every time I see you!” she exclaimed to Terry, wrapping him in a big hug. “You’ll be taller than me in no time. But that isn’t saying much, is it?” The boy laughed. Grandma was many things, but she was not tall by any stretch of the imagination, even to an eight-year-old.

“Hi, Mom,” Meghan said, giving her mother another tight hug. “How you been?”

Grandma shrugged. “Better, I think. Trying to keep busy.”

“That’s good.”

Once the pleasantries were out of the way, father and son found their way to the living room TV. Terry wanted to have a scary movie marathon before going trick-or-treating. Unknown to him, of course, his parents had decided to keep the movies as child-friendly as possible. Meghan’s suggestion for the first flick, which her husband agreed with, was Beetlejuice.

Despite wanting to join her family watching the movie, Meghan sat with her mother in the kitchen.

“So how is everything going for you, darling?” Rose asked.

Meghan told her all about Terry’s school – “He’s in third grade now!”– and how her job was going.

“Busy with work and the kid,” she said. It was the usual stock answer she’d found herself using recently with her mom.

It had been five years since her father passed away, bringing an impossible change for all of them. The weekly talks had been a lifeline for both women during the worst times. Things had gotten better for Meghan; the pain had slowly faded. But Meghan still worried for her mother. The pitiful Halloween display outside was harsh reminder of that.

“I’m so glad you all decided to come here for Halloween,” Rose said. “I know Terry will love trick-or-treating in the old neighborhood. You always had so much fun doing it yourself growing up.”

“That I did,” Meghan said, thinking back with nostalgia. “I know Terry will love it. But…” she quickly stopped herself, but it was too late. Rose had heard the conjunction.

“But what?” she asked.

Meghan was hesitant to say, but she knew her mother wouldn’t let it go. She never did.

“It’s just…” Meghan began. “I haven’t spent a Halloween back here since Dad died, and… Well, I guess I was disappointed the decorations weren’t out. I mean, Dad loved making the house look creepy. This was his favorite holiday.”

Grandma Rose stared.

“You’re… right,” she admitted before falling silent. No explanation. Just staring off into space. “Do you… do you remember,” she finally said, “back when you were little, what your father would do after you dumped the trick-or-treat candy on the floor?”

A small smile grew on Meghan’s face. As the memories flooded back, the smile grew into a bright grin. She knew exactly what her mother was talking about: the candy Jack-o-Lantern.

“Of course I do,” she said.

Every year, Meghan had poured out her collected treats, to see just how big her chocolate mountain was. Her father joined her in sorting through it, picking out their favorites, and separating the crap candy no one in the house liked. But instead of throwing the waste out, Dad would place the candies on the carpet in the shape of a Jack-o-Lantern face. The candies served as outlines for triangle eyes and nose, and a small mouth. If there was enough garbage candy, he’d even add the outline of a tooth or two.

“You can’t let candy go to waste on Halloween,” Dad would always say. “If you don’t want to eat it, at least do something fun with it.”

The family would leave it there on the floor all night, carefully stepping over it as they came and went.

“Your dad did have a lot of rules,” Rose said.

“No, Halloween has a lot of rules,” Meghan corrected with a chuckled.

According to her father, there were many rules pertaining to All Hallows’ Eve. It had been his favorite holiday forever, and he took it seriously.

When the leaves started to turn, Bradley’s eyes started to gleam with excitement. He’d bring out an entire gift store’s worth of decorations to cover the house in. Even the inside wasn’t safe. The living room and kitchen were decked out with tiny pumpkins, witches on brooms, and ghosts. And when the fateful evening would arrive, the man put out the bowl of candy and cranked up loud holiday music from his own mixed CD filled with horror movie theme songs and half the soundtrack from The Nightmare Before Christmas. He was very proud of it.

With the show set, he’d wait behind the bushes for trick-or-treaters to show up. When they did… he jumped out in his very detailed Jason Voorhees costume, complete with a bloody machete, and scare the crap out of the kids. There were laughs and screams every time.

Once, when she was in the eighth grade, after years of doing the whole Friday the 13th theme, Meghan suggested they try something new. At least try another slasher costume, like Michael Meyers or Freddy. But no, her Dad told her, it was Jason or nothing.

“It’s the principal of the thing,” Bradley would say. He’d hold up the hockey goalie mask made famous by the movie series. “Besides, Jason was obviously a Red Wings fan. Gotta support him for that.”

Young Meghan had admitted defeat. She couldn’t argue with Hockeytown love.

“Those were amazing times,” Meghan said. She realized, with a little embarrassment, that she must have been staring off. “I miss those days a lot. I miss him a lot.”

“So do I honey,” Rose said. “Every day.”

A moment of silence passed. They both knew what the other was thinking, but neither wanted to say it. The moment dragged on, bordering on the outright awkward until Grandma Rose cleared her throat.

“I… I’m sorry this isn’t the type of Halloween you’re used to at this house. It’s just, ever since your father died…”

“I know, Mom.” Meghan’s voice was gentle. “You don’t have to explain. I don’t know if I could bring myself to do it either. Without him here… this house doesn’t feel, well, haunted.”

Rose let a tiny smile escape to her face. “That’s a good way of putting it,” she said.

“But when we decided to bring Terry here for Halloween, I was hoping maybe he’d get to experience some of the magic I did growing up. The magic Dad brought to it. The decorations, the music. Let him experience all of it!”

In a flash, Meghan realized how many memories of her father she had buried. It wasn’t like she actively tried to forget, but she missed him. Even something as simple as learning a few childish traditions from him. And Meg realized, as much as the absence hurt her, it must hurt her mother even worst.

You were expecting too much from her, she told herself. Cut her some slack. It was her husband who died. Her husband that you’re dwelling on so much. Its not like you can bring him back.

“Then why don’t we do it?” A loud voice cried out of nowhere.

Both women nearly jumped out of their seats.

Terry’s head peeked into the kitchen.

“Honey, what did I say about listening in on people like that?” Meghan said after composing herself. “You shouldn’t do that.”

“Sorry, Mom,” he said. The boy didn’t sound sorry at all. “But if Grandpa Bradley had so much fun doing Halloween stuff, can we do it too?”

Meghan looked to her own mother, not sure what to. Grandma Rose looked uncertain, and for a moment even sad, but that quickly vanished. It was replaced with excitement Meghan hadn’t seen on her mother’s face in years.

“Maybe we should, Terry,” she said. “All of Grandpa’s stuff is still the basement.” She looked at her daughter. “It’s been long enough since those skeletons saw the light of day.”

It didn’t take long for Meghan to start nodding her head. “Let’s do it.”

Digging through the piles of boxes was an enormous challenge. Luckily, they had Steve do all the heavy lifting, carrying each box upstairs out of the back corner of the basement.

“How did I get stuck with this?” he asked, trying his best to sound serious. He was failing.

“Stop complaining already,” Meghan said. “And hurry up will you? It’s Halloween, you know, and we have to get all this stuff set up tonight.”

“If my hands weren’t full, I’d be showing you a certain finger,” Steve said. Meghan stuck her tongue out at him.

Once the last box was out, the family searched through each one and pulled out the best decorations. There were plastic skeletons, Styrofoam tombstones, strings of orange lights, and a large plastic caldron that in years past held candy to attract the trick-or-treaters nice and close for ‘Jason’ to jump at.

In one of the boxes, Meghan came across an old CD case. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight. Could it be? she thought. Slowly, her hands opened it. Low and behold, sitting in the case was her father’s famous Halloween-mixed soundtrack.

Meghan felt her eyes tear up as she held the disc for the first time in years. We’re going to have a proper Halloween this year, she thought. Just like the ones Dad gave us. She quickly wiped her eyes dry.

Digging the best decorations out of the boxes was one thing. Setting it all up in the front yard, with the chilly air and tight deadline, was another struggle completely. The Sun was already starting to get low in the sky. Halloween evening was fast approaching.

It took some serious teamwork, but by 6 o’clock, the homemade graveyard was ready. Steve put up the finishing touches in the form of giant spider webs on the front door and porch railing.

When it was complete, the whole family took a step back to admire their work. A row of headstones with skeletons trying to escape their graves covered the lawn, while spider webs and orange lights gave a creepy feel to the front porch, and its lone candy cauldron sitting in the center. A few plastic pumpkins joined the original Jack-o-Lantern.

“It’s beautiful,” Rose said. “Just like how Bradley use to do it.”

“Terry, we should get our costumes on soon,” Steve said.

“Yes!” His son started jumping up and down in excitement.

Terry stepped out of the bedroom in his homemade Batman outfit, and immediately began showing off. Meghan had made the costume herself, cutting out a cape and sewing together a mask with eye slots and pointed bat ears. To complete the look, she’d hot-glued a yellow-cloth cutout Batman symbol to the front of a black sweater.

It wouldn’t win any awards, but the outfit had heart, unlike those store-bought costumes most people used. That was another rule Meghan had picked up from her father. If you can make it yourself, then make it.

Terry loved it all the same, running around the living room to make the cape billow behind him. He kept saying “I’m Batman!” in his best Christian Bale voice.

Meghan and Rose cheered him on.

Going along with his son’s theme, Steve stepped into the living room in a full Joker getup. His disguise came complete with the green-dyed hair, white face paint and a red Glasgow smile. He wore a purple jacket over a green button up shirt they’d found at the thrift shop.

Seeing his villain, the pint-sized Batman leapt across the room and pretended to punch the Joker right in the gut. Steve grabbed at his stomach and fell on his butt. Terry yelled in triumph. So did Meghan.

“Hooray!” she said. “Now, you two get together for a photo.” The boys did, as Steve put an arm around his son. “Those costumes turned out so good!” Meghan said when she took the pic.

“Look at my cape, Grandma!” Terry said, running around the room again, flapping his arms.

“I see it. It’s very cool,” Rose said. “Like the real Batman!”

“Trick-or-treat,” several voices announced at the front door.

“Oh right, I have candy duty,” Rose said. It was a grand moment: passing out the first pieces of Halloween candy. Meghan watched the kids excitedly say thanks as the candy fell into their bags.

“Meghan, would you turn the Halloween music on?” Rose asked. “Play your father’s CD. You know where the switch for the speakers is at.”

“Sure,” Meghan replied. She headed into the garage, the old stereo was still there, ready to go. She slid in the disk and flipped a switch. For a few moments, white noise filled the air. Then silence. Then music began.

Over the speakers, for all the neighborhood to hear, came the words of Danny Elfman loud and clear.

“Boys and girls of every age, wouldn’t you like to see something strange? Come with us and you will see, this our town of Halloween.”

Meghan felt her joy grow. Her father had always loved the Nightmare Before Christmas movie, and its songs.

Now this is Halloween, she thought.

As she stepped back into the house, Meghan was singing along. It was amazing how she remembered every word despite not hearing the song in years.

More children in outfits had arrived when she stepped into the living room, no doubt attracted to the house by the creepy music. There was no Jason hidden in the shadows to frighten them, but with the plastic ghouls escaping their dirt beds, it was as close to a proper childhood Halloween Meghan had felt in forever.

“Let’s hit the streets, kid,” Steve said to Terry. The boy jumped off the couch he’d been bouncing on, ran right past the adults and out the door.

“You sure you don’t want to come along?” Steve asked Meghan. “I could use the adult company.”

Meghan shook her head. “You two go ahead and have fun. I’m good here on candy duty with Mom.” She suddenly remembered something and rushed to her travel bag. “But even when I’m inside, that’s not an excuse to be out of costume on Halloween!” Digging through the clothes, Meghan pulled out a black witch’s hat and miniature broom.

“That’s fantastic!” Steve said with a laugh.

Meghan put the hat on and struck a pose with broom in hand. “I thought so myself.”

The boys headed out to begin the greatest of Halloween traditions. Just as they left, a large group of children wandered through the haunted front lawn.

“Trick or Treat!” the kids exclaimed.

Meghan sat next to her mother on the porch, handing out candy from the black cauldron. It quickly got busy on the front porch, as more and more kids came by.

It didn’t take long for the pot to run low on sweets. Rose disappeared into the house.

“It’s been a while since I decorated for Halloween, but I’ve never stopped handing out candy,” she explained after returning with two more bags of chocolates. “I’m always prepared for running out early. I guess old habits die hard.”

“That they do, Mom,” Meghan said.

The ladies saw all sorts of costumes walk up. There were the classic vampires, ghosts, and little pumpkins, alongside the modern favorites like superheroes, aliens, and cartoon princesses. All were excited about the recently added graveyard and ghouls that surrounded them.

More than a few of the parents even stepped forward to say how much they enjoyed the house this year.

“It’s so good to see the old haunted house back this year!” a mother dressed up like Supergirl said. “My kids and I missed the songs you guys played. I’m so happy you brought it back!”

“Thank you,” Rose said sincerely.

When the mother and her kids moved on to the next house, Rose leaned in close to her daughter. “I… I guess I’d forgotten why your father loved doing this. It wasn’t just for us, it’s for everyone. That’s what Halloween is about.”

“And I’m glad we can enjoy it together,” Meghan said, giving her Mom a tight hug.

The night wore on. By the time the CD had reached the end – closing with Werewolves of London – most of the children were heading back home. Trick-or-Treating was coming to an end.

“I think it’s time to head in,” Rose said, rubbing her arms with shiver.

“I think you’re right. It’s starting to get too chilly even for me,” Meghan said. “I hope Steve doesn’t let Terry stay out too late.”

They grabbed the almost empty cauldron and headed inside. Meghan turned off the music, sending the Halloween night into an eerie silence. The rustling of leaves, and distance voices of the older kids still out and about, were the only sounds heard.

Meghan stood on the porch alone and closed her eyes. She smiled, feeling the quiet wash over her. There was always a supernatural feeling in the air on this night. It was a vibe her father had loved and passed on to Meg. It was so easy to picture him standing next to her now, enjoying the Halloween night, like they had so many times before.

“Meghan, I’m getting the Witch’s Brew ready!” Rose called out from the kitchen.

“Coming!” Meghan said.

Now came the late-night tradition of the house: hot spiced wine and a Halloween documentary on TV. Meghan breathed in the wonderful aroma rising from her glass.

The first glass went down with incredible ease. As Meghan poured a second, she heard footsteps on the porch.

“Trick or Treat!” voices outside declared.

“Late comers?” Meghan said.

“There are a couple every year,” Rose said. “See what candy we have left.”

The cauldron sat on the kitchen table, but before Meghan could grab it, loud screams erupted outside. She rushed to the door just in time to see the kids running away at full speed.

“That was weird…” Meghan opened the door and stepped out. The fleeing kids didn’t slow down or even bother to look back.

What was that about? Meghan wondered. Maybe they were trying to scare everyone in the house.

A final search around the front lawn found no one out there in the dark. Meghan shrugged and turned off the porch light.

It wasn’t too much longer before Steve and Terry returned. Both were laughing happily, but Meghan threw an angry look at her husband. He’d kept their boy out far too late. Steve only shrugged and grinned. In his Joker make-up, he looked more sadistic than charming.

“So how did you do, Batman?” Rose asked.

Terry turned his bag over and poured the contents all over the living room floor. The pile of candy had an impressive variety, including several full-size bars. “It was amazing!” the boy shouted.

“A lot of people liked his cape,” Steve said. The son couldn’t help but throw it up behind him once more to show just how cool it was.

After the demonstration, Terry got right down to business. He began to sort through the candy, picking out his favorites.

“Remember, don’t eat too much tonight, Terry,” Meghan said. “Only have a few. The rest we’ll take home tomorrow.”

“Alright…” Terry said, sounding less than thrilled about having to pace his chocolate intake.

Despite the disappointment, the little Batman continued his work, while the adults settled down with their wine. On the television, experts discussed the history of Samhain, the old Gaelic autumn festival.

Watching over the scene, Meghan felt a glow growing in her chest. These were the best times, she realized. Just sitting at home, enjoying the presence of loved ones. We did get to have a proper Halloween, after all, she thought. I think you’d be proud, Dad.

Rose eventually said goodnight and headed to bed, wishing everyone a Happy Halloween. A short time later, Steve lifted himself off the couch.

“I’m going to try and wash this face paint off,” he said. “I don’t know if work would like me coming in looking like this tomorrow.”

Terry laughed loudly, a half-eaten chocolate bar in his hand.

“I should probably use the downstairs bathroom,” Steve thought out loud. “This might take a while to get off.”

“Good luck, honey,” Meghan said as Steve disappeared into the bathroom. She turned to her son. “So, did you have a fun time?”

“Yes I did!” Terry answered. “This place is so cool! There are a lot of houses with all these big monsters and balloon stuff out front. And they gave out a lot of candy!”

“Good to hear,” Meghan said. “Maybe we can try to come here again for next Halloween.”

“Definitely,” Terry agreed.

The boy searched through the candies until he seemed to remember something.

“I also liked the guy that was hiding in the bushes and scaring people,” he told his mom.

“Who?” Meghan asked, only half paying attention as she sipped her wine.

“Right outside,” Terry said. “He was there when me and Dad left. And I saw him pop out and scare away those late kids when we were coming back. He was laughing.”

“Outside here?” Meghan was now alarmed. She jumped to the front window, pulled the curtain aside and looked out. No one was in the bushes, at least that she could see. “Terry, why didn’t you say anything? It could have been someone dangerous or looking for trouble.”

“I don’t think he was,” Terry said. “He waved to me and seemed really nice. He was just having fun.”

“What did he look like?” Meghan asked.

“Well, he was wearing a hockey mask like that horror movie guy,” Terry answered.

Meghan felt the blood rush from her face. “What?”

“Yeah, I don’t remember the name of the movie, but he was dressed up like the bad guy,” Terry continued. “It was funny when he scared those kids away.”

Meghan stared out the window again, scanning the entire front lawn. Still, no one was there.

“Hey Mom, I have to go to the bathroom,” Terry said.

Meghan tried to respond but nothing came out of her mouth. She could only nod to let him know she’d heard. He hurried out of the room to take care of business.

What does it mean? Meghan thought. There wasn’t an answer she could find. Instead, she stared out toward the spot in the bushes where her father had always stood, waiting in his Jason costume every Halloween. There was no masked man there now.

Her hand shaking, Meghan took a deep breath, and let it out nice and slow to calm her nerves.

Reluctantly, she pulled herself away from the window and sat down on the couch. Her heart was beating hard. Then she saw it.

Next to the pile of candy on the floor, was a candy Jack-o-Lantern face. Meghan almost let out a scream, but managed to throw her hands over her mouth in time to stop it. Without thinking, she jumped up and ran around the whole house, trying to see if anyone was there. No one was.

Slowing down, she returned to the living room and fell to the floor next to the candy face.

Tears were rolling down her cheeks now, but then she began to laugh. Meghan reached out and took one of the bad candies. She looked at it, still laughing before putting it back to complete the Jack-o-Lantern.

“Now it’s a proper Halloween,” Meghan said out loud. No one was there to hear it, but Meghan had the distinct feeling someone heard her.

“Mom? Are you okay?” Terry said, coming back into the room.

Meghan nodded and waved her son over. She gave him a big hug and said she loved him.

“What’s that?” Terry asked, pointing to the candy face.

“That’s a candy Jack-o-Lantern,” Meghan answered, letting the boy go. He sat down next to her on the ground. “It’s something Grandpa Bradley use to make for me when I was a kid on Halloween. It uses all the bad candy no one likes.”

“Why?”

“Because you should never let candy go to waste on Halloween,” Meghan explained. “Even the gross candy can be used to make something fun. That’s one of the rules Grandpa taught me.”

“I like that rule,” Terry said. “Even the gross candy isn’t left out. What other rules did Grandpa Bradley have for Halloween?”

“Oh, there are a lot of them,” Meghan said. “My Dad always told me not to take Halloween lightly. It’s an important holiday, he’d always say…”

###

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About the Creator

Bryan Warrick

Having spent years writing as a journalist and publicist, I've decided to get serious about my fiction writing. Looking to learn and improve as a writer, so please check out my short stories and let me know what you think!

Thank you all!

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Nice work

Very well written. Keep up the good work!

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  1. Heartfelt and relatable

    The story invoked strong personal emotions

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