Goblin-less

"You goin' to the boss's Halloween party?" a co-worker asked me.

"Nah."

"Why not?"

There are all kinds of office stories about Halloweens past, where so-and-so got too drunk to walk, then fell down a flight of stairs, and this and that person snuck into the toilet together and locked every one out for two hours. There's no telling which stories are true and which ones are just passed around for ease of boredom, but I certainly didn't want my name inserted into any of them.

"Mister M's flying me down for the weekend. You'll all be getting sick on Jell-o shots, and I'll be walking on the beach, watching the sun set." I smiled. I was looking very forward to the weekend.

And it was lovely. We had breakfast with a friend of his, dinner with some family, and spent the rest of the time loafing around and relaxing. I suppose the introduction to family and friends is a major milestone in a relationship. The last time he was in KC, he met my parents for a few brief moments. Then again, we've been seeing each other, at least casually, for around eleven months. Time flies, I guess. It seems a long time, when you put a number on it. I haven't noticed.

I spent Halloween evening at my parents', just like I do every year. It isn't really a family thing; it's mostly just dad and me. He loves to see the little ghosts and goblins parading up and down the street, giggling and running and having a good time. This year, thought, my folks are in an apartment. They didn't close on their farm til the day after Halloween. Unfortunately, that meant my dad spent the majority of the evening sitting in front of the open door with a bowl of candy in his lap, looking forlornly out at the parking lot, waiting for even one child to scamper by.

None did.

When 8 o'clock struck, I asked if he wanted to pack up and drive to his church, and pass out candy there. He sighed, saying no, he'd rather wait here, just in case. His porch light was the only one on in the entire complex. No children were going to stop by, and we all knew it, but none of us had the heart to discourage him.

Mom got the brilliant idea that we should drive out to the farm so I could see it. I hadn't yet been out, what with the family feud and all. We tried to get dad to go, but he was determined to stick it out by the door. When we got back about an hour later, he'd gone to bed.

He never did get any trick-or-treaters.