Like most of you, Halloween has always held a special place in my heart. It’s a time of year when the veil between reality and fantasy thins and life’s usual rules are suspended for a night of childhood fun. This is a story about those annual nights of candy-fueled mischief, a story that has haunted me for years.
I grew up in a small town where everyone knew everyone else. Every Halloween, my friends and I would pool together in ever-changing groups to go trick-or-treating. Friends of friends would show up, unfamiliar faces from the next town over, transient Halloween allies that drifted in and out of our lives like apparitions.
There was one kid, though. A girl who was more ghost than human. She always wore the same costume every year, a wolf mask, and introduced herself as Spooky. No one knew where she came from or who brought her, but every Halloween, like clockwork, she’d be there, her amber eyes flashing from behind the wolf mask. She had a magnetism that was impossible to resist - a charm that bewitched us all.
Spooky was the one who introduced us to “Trick AND Treat,” an evolved version of trick-or-treating where we’d play tricks even if we got candy. It started innocently enough, toilet-papering houses or ringing doorbells and hiding. The thrill of being a bit naughty was intoxicating, especially under Spooky’s spell.
I had a bit of a crush on her, despite never seeing her without the wolf mask. But she never showed interest in anyone. She was more excited about getting at least one of every kind of candy we got. “You got to get the full set!” she’d say, making it our unofficial motto.
As the years went by, Spooky’s tricks began to escalate. The once fun-loving pranks took a darker turn, becoming more malicious. Rocks through windows, trash cans set on fire, pets stolen. It started to make me uncomfortable, but I never said anything - not wanting to disappoint her.
When I was 12, I got sick on Halloween. I missed out on that year’s festivities. I remember how frustrated I was, feeling left out. But that feeling turned to dread the next day when I discovered my friends hadn’t come home from trick-or-treating.
An extensive search was launched. Days turned into weeks, and hope turned into despair. Finally, they found my friends’ bodies in a network of nearby caves, drowned when the tide came in. Spooky, however, was never found. No one in town knew who she was or where she came from.
I moved away from that town when I grew up. The memories were too painful. I started a family and tried to put the past behind me. But some specters refuse to stay buried.
My son, now the same age I was when I used to go trick-or-treating with Spooky, recently brought up Halloween. I found a drawing in his room, a crude sketch of a girl in a wolf mask with the name ‘Spooky’ scribbled underneath. My heart froze. Was this coincidence, or was history repeating itself? My son told me one of his friends had introduced him to a new girl, Spooky. He said she had the most beautiful amber eyes.
I have decided that my son will not go trick-or-treating alone next year, or any year following. I can’t help but wonder if Spooky is a real person, a cursed spirit, or the embodiment of Halloween mischief gone too far. But there’s one thing I do know - I won’t let my son be claimed by her games, her tricks, and treats. I won’t lose him like I lost my friends.
So remember, folks. When Halloween comes around, keep your kids close, and always, always check their candy. You never know what, or who, might be lurking in the shadows. The allure of the ‘full set’ can sometimes lead to a very different kind of collection.