All Hallows Eve

Halloween night. A strange man sits on top of a lonely hill while observing the small town below. He is accompanied by a medium-sized tree that still contains most of its leaves. The majority of the local trees have already shed their leaves but not this one. The smell of recently cut grass fills his nostrils. The moon brightens the night leaving the darkness vulnerable and naked. A gentle zephyr wraps itself around all of the trick-or-treaters as they gallop from home to home in desperate search for their cancer. There are no stars in the sky; tonight they hide in fear. No grasshopper dares to speak up on this auspicious evening. 

The man dawns an old-looking mask that appears custom made. It’s light brown and filled with holes; dreadlocks pierce these holes to complete the mask. He is wearing a band t-shirt that is worn and faded, the letters on it are still a vibrant red though. The blue jeans he wears are torn by both knees while his converse shoes appear worn out. The masked man slowly rises and in doing so reveals a gargantuan kitchen knife that reflects the beaming moon. He departs from the top of the hill and descends toward the small town. 

Heavy metal music blasts thunderously from a black Dodge Challenger driving by as the masked man walks down the street and by the local high school. A long red-banner on the chain link fence of the school states, “Bullying Awareness Month.” The fall-colored leaves cover the sidewalk and crunch with every step taken. The zephyr pushes them along as if they were avoiding the masked man. He passes a church as the singing choir echoes through the corridors and out into the local neighborhood. 

Ding! Donny opens the door to trick-or-treaters and gleefully hands them candy. He closes the door emphatically. 

“Lord those children are annoying. I should have kept my porch light off.” Donny states with great irritation. His girlfriend Melanie sits in the darkness of the living room watching a horror film. 

“Baby don’t be like that, the kids need their candy.” She says with little care while messing around on her cell phone.

“Psh, whatever. They come because nobody has better candy than I do babe.” He says with child-like arrogance. He jumps back onto the couch with Melanie. “Pass the popcorn over.” He demands rudely. She hesitates and gives him a “death stare.” Melanie then grabs more popcorn and places it into her mouth without breaking eye contact from Donny. “Don’t be such a b***h Mel.” 

“What the hell did you just call me?!” Melanie yells while getting to her feet. “You’re an a*****e!” She dumps the popcorn over Donny’s head and storms off. 

“Babe! What the f**k?! Such drama with you I swear.” Donny reaches into his football team jacket and pulls out a small bottle of Jack Daniel’s as popcorn falls from his head. He uncaps it and starts chugging it down. He hears a door slam shut. He turns with a sour look on his face and gets up from the couch. “Babe! Where’d ya go?” Donny leans over to peak into the kitchen but sees nobody in there. He strolls over into the kitchen and notices the back door is open. The cold breeze flows in and blows in a small pile of leaves. He walks over to the door and leans out, “Babe what are you doing out . . . “ He stopped mid sentence because there was nobody outside in the backyard. He looks left and right with a perplexed expression on his face. 

“What are you doing?” A familiar voice asked. Donny turns to see Melanie by the entrance of the kitchen. 

“Did you not leave the back door open?” He asks with uncertainty. As she was about to answer his question Donny is suddenly stabbed straight to the chest. Blood shoots out and starts pouring down his body. She screams as he crashes onto the cold tile that’s covered in a pile of leaves. The masked man peeks into the kitchen to see Melanie dashing out of the home. Donny is in shock as he sits up leaning against the back door. He struggles to keep his head upright. The masked man flings his dreadlocks back to remove the mask. He tightly grasps Donny’s jaw to lift up his head forcibly. Donny’s eyes meet the now unmasked man’s eyes. He starts crying and wets himself, made visible through his jeans. The unmasked man tilts his head slightly and grins. 

“I am not your kind.”