Author's note: This is an entry in the Halloween 2019 story contest. Please vote!
All characters are over 18-years-old.
I can't believe I let my sister talk me into this. I hated performing for people and normally wouldn't be caught dead in a costume. But she'd insisted that I participate in the haunted hayride. It was "for charity," she said. She said it would be "fun". Yeah. Right.
I looked at myself up and down in the full-length mirror in the dressing room set up in the Miller's red barn and let out a heavy sigh. I was wearing a sexy wedding dress, artfully torn and covered with fake blood. The sweetheart neckline barely covered my breasts, I could hardly breathe because of the corset. The skirt was ripped to shreds and reached only to mid-thigh, doing little to cover my white satin panties . My auburn hair was teased into a wild bird's nest so that it stuck up all over my head. I had a huge (fake) gash across my forehead, dripping with (fake) blood. My face was made-up a ghostly white and my eye sockets were darkened with so much black grease paint that my blue eyes looked like two pieces of ice.
"You look gooood!" my sister squealed from behind me, looking over my shoulder and giving me an appraising look.
"I look scary. I hate that people are going to be watching me."
"I know. I know. But you look awesome. So sexy! You'll be drawing in all sorts of donations for us! I owe you big time."
"Yes. You do."
"You know I wouldn't have asked if I had any options.
"And it's for a good cause."
I just shrugged, which caused my nipples to come dangerously close to being exposed, which caused me to hiss in dismay and my sister to laugh hysterically.
"I really, really, REALLY hope I don't give anyone a peep show in this dress!"
"Don't worry about it. We don't allow photography on the hayride, so even if you have a nip-slip it won't be recorded for posterity. But make sure it doesn't happen in front of any small fry. Wait to tease the college students!"
"Way to
not
make me feel better about this, sis," I said, in no mood for her silver lining.
"Listen, just remember that we are raising money to help the Firefighters get that new truck."
I sighed again and shook my head, my face softening.
"I know. I know. We all need to do our part to raise money for them...
"But you HAVE TO promise that I will not see Tate while I'm here."
"Do you have shoes? I didn't bring shoes," my sister said, suddenly.
"No, I do NOT have shoes. Are you fucking kidding me, Amy? I don't have shoes to wear with a wedding dress!"
"Maybe zombie brides don't wear shoes..."
"Great. I'll just wear my tennis shoes, in that case."
"No one is going to look at your feet when they can look at your boobs, Tia."
"Christ, Amy!"
My sister just doubled over laughing at that. Ah, well.
"Your ride out to your spot will be here any second. Grab a couple bottles of water and get out there to meet them."
***
I hopped out of the old clunker pick-up that had been my ride out to the 'Zombie Bride' vignette and picked my way over to my spot. The scene set next to the path of the Haunted Hayride had a truck wrapped around a tree, set up with a machine so that smoke rolled in giant plumes out from under the crumpled hood. There was a truck's bench seat, complete with seat belts, artfully arranged to look like it had been catapulted from the truck, but it was really just a place for me and my groom (whoever that was) to sit while we waited for the next wagon-load of guests.
I knew that we were at the point farthest from the entrance to the Haunted Forest. I'd passed life-size dioramas of vampires and werewolves, masked killers, and a mad scientist on my ride to my spot. I knew there were two Headless Horsemen on the loose in the forest, ready to ride up and scare people as they rode carts full of hay bales. From my position I could see the flood-lights that illuminated the corn maze that was the last obstacle for people before they could get to the tents set up selling warm apple cider. Being here, a part of this, should have been fun.
I was still incredibly annoyed at my sister. Amy knew that I was in a deep funk since I'd come home from college for fall break. And yet she'd still asked me to step in when the original Zombie Bride had torn her ACL falling off a scooter downtown. She also was well aware of the fact that I was trying desperately to avoid my ex-boyfriend, Tate Miller, and that considering the Haunted Forest took place on his family's farm and all his brothers were costumed spooks in it, not running into Tate was going to be a huge challenge. But Amy knew I wouldn't be able to say no. Not in good conscience anyway.
I was still poking around at the 'set', getting familiar with it when I heard hoofbeats behind me and turned around to see the Headless Horseman.
"Hey, Tia," came a muffled voice I recognized as one of Tate's twin brothers. The voice came from somewhere inside the chest of the horseman, under a billowing red shirt and black cape. The figure held a jack o'lantern under one arm, a sword in the other. "Amy asked me to tell you that Ta... your groom is on his way. She forgot to give you the two-way radio and is sending it with him. Cell coverage is... sporadic out here, to say the least."