The following story is for Halloween 2019 Contest. I have been away for a bit and used this as fun warm up to get my writing skills warmed up. Hope you all like it and if you do, please vote. For fans of my other stories, I should have some new chapters soon.
***
Halloween at the Turner house was always the biggest holiday of the year. Sheriff Miles Turner had been born three days before Halloween, so he had always felt a bond to the holiday. This year was no different, life had made some drastic changes but wasn't going to let that stop him. It was Halloween, and that meant costumes, kids and candy, just some of his favorite things.
Miles was a widower of two years now, and his daughter Deena was wrapping up her degree across the country. When she had been home, Halloween had been trick or treating, followed by horror movie marathons until the wee hours of the morning. It had driven Paulette his late wife crazy, but she always humored her husband.
It was going on five o'clock as Miles pulled out his second batch of popcorn for the afternoon. In the past, it had been smothered in butter but now just lightly salted. He had to watch the calories after his last doctors' appointment. On his way back to the couch from the kitchen, he snagged a fresh hard cider and the extra bag of candy he got on the way home. The prior year had been cold, so he didn't get many trick or treaters. However, this year, it was expected to be the warmest day of the week, if not the month. Miles always wanted to be prepared, he knew what happened to houses around here that ran out of candy.
Miles felt like he was in a comedy movie as he balanced the various items in his hands as he made his way to the couch. The phone in his pocket buzzed as he tried putting everything down on the table. In the background, Jason Vorhees on the TV was chasing down another teenager. Paul had lost track of this movie was Friday the 13th part five or six. They all blended together after watch that many in a row.
"Hello," Miles said as he held the phone to his ear and twisted the top off of his cider.
"So how far are you now?" Asked the familiar voice on the phone.
"Hi Sweetie," he said to his daughter. "I am onto five or six, I think."
"Wow, Dad," Deena said, surprised. "You must have started early this year."
"I had to," Miles joked as he sat down and put his legs up on the table. "Last year, I did Romero's zombie movies, and there isn't that many of them. This year I got ten to do."
"You know Dad, Romero did like seven zombie flicks, right?" His daughter said, being a smart ass.
"Yeah, but only four are good," he replied quickly. "Those last few are garbage!"
Deena laughed at her father's remarks. They had this conversation a million times over the years, but that would stop him from bringing it all up again. Miles swigged his cider waiting for the other shoe to fall. He suspected why his daughter was calling.
"So got a date tonight," Deena said with a hopeful tone.
"You know I don't," he said, petting the jet black cat that hopped up on the cushion next to him. "Just me and Renfield watching movies. I suspect it will be a good year for trick or treaters."
The cat snuggled against him as he pulled a handful of popcorn. He tossed a kernel to Renfield, and the cat gobbled it down. On TV a boy and girl were having sex in a tent. The girl's giant tits bounced around as she rode her man. Seconds later, both got killed by Jason in his iconic hockey mask.
"You know it's ok to date, right?" Deena asked.
"Definitely, number five," Miles said, ignoring his daughter's question.
"Dad, don't ignore me," she said, annoyed. "You're not even fifty yet. Mom would want you out there. She didn't want you alone."
"I am not pumpkin," he said, scooping the cat into his lap. "I got Renfield and you."
"Yeah, but I am two thousand miles away right now, and Renfield isn't getting any younger. Especially if you are still feeding his fat ass popcorn."
"Ok," Miles said, knowing he would lose this fight. He knew Deena was right, but all the women he knew were married or came with piles of baggage he didn't need. He had plenty of his own. "I will start looking for a date next week. Cross my heart, pinky swear."
"I'll believe it when I see it," she said begrudgingly.
"What about you," He asked. "Plans tonight?"
"I did, but my professor just sprung a surprise quiz on us for tomorrow. I am going to need to study."
"Oh, that sucks," Dad remarked.
The bell to the door rang, indicating the time of trick or treating had begun. Still, on the phone, Miles moved the car back to his nearby bed on the couch and got his bowl of candy. He made his way to the door.
"Is it that time already?" Deena asked and having obviously heard the doorbell over the phone. "I forget the time change between here and there."
"Yeah, this is the first one of the night," he said then opened his front door.
Several kids about six or seven dressed as superheroes like Batman, Spider-Man, and he thought one was supposed to be Wonder Woman, but it was hard to tell. Each one cheered, "Trick or Treat!" as Miles doled out two or three pieces of candy into there buckets. An older gray-haired woman was standing in the yard watching the kids. She smiled and waved to Miles as the kids one by one ran back to her.
"What do we say?" She asked the kids around her.
"Thank you!" They said in unison at him. It was adorable.
"Stay safe, Mrs. Harrison." He called out to the older woman.
"We will, Sheriff!" She called back as she scooted the kids along into the night. Miles saw several more kids down the block coming but a few houses up.
"Mrs. Harrison taking the grandkids again?" Deena asked.
"Yeah, she does that every year now. Renee and her husband both work night shift up at the hospital."
"Ahhhh," Deena said in acknowledgment. "By the way," she began as something dawned on her. "You might see Trisha tonight."
"Trisha?" Miles said, surprised. "I thought she was going to school upstate, and isn't she a bit old to trick or treat?"
"She lost her financing this year," Deena explained sadly. "Been home since August helping at the store. I think she is finishing her degree over at the community college in a few months."
"That sucks," Miles told his daughter. Trisha Lee was Deena's longest and closest friend. He had fond memories of him and his wife taking the girls to places. Her parents ran a local gas station, and he was surprised he had not seen her there.
"Yeah," Deena agreed. "She was pretty upset about it. Tonight she might be taking her brother's kids trick or treating for him. He is working late, and Franny is expecting kid number four."
"Jesus," Miles exclaimed as he thought back to when Jerry would pull up to pick up his sister in that beat-up Toyota he drove. Then he remembered the time he pulled the boy over for speeding the first time. The poor kid cried and begged to be let off. Miles did, of course, but told him if he caught him again, there would be hell to pay. "He is old enough to have four kids?"
"Yeah, med school worked out well for him."
"I guess to hell it did," Miles joked as the bell rang again.
"I am going to let you go," Deena told him. "Busy night for you. Love you and call me tomorrow, ok?"
"Sure thing," Miles said reassuringly to her. "Love you too!"
He answered the door now free of the phone and greet the new kids. Knowing they were on the way, he never sat back down; he stood in the foyer waiting. The movie echoed in the other room.
Up and down he went as the kids came and went. Later in the evening, he wasn't surprised when Trisha Lee stood there with three little ones all in costume.
"Trick or Treat Sheriff!" They all called out. He gave each on a handful of candy.
"I just heard you might be coming by," Miles told his daughter's friend. Trisha was Asian, Korean Miles remembered. She had dark-framed glasses, shoulder-length straight black hair, and was a very petite, nerdy girl. Or at least she had been the last time Miles remembered her coming to the house. The girl standing before him had filled out with curves, a bust, and had on Halloween themed make-up and clothes. He almost didn't recognize her at all. She didn't have the glasses, her hair was in a side punk-rock side ponytail with a red bow that had devil horns coming out of it. The shirt was a tight white T-shirt with a corner cut out of the neck showing the top portion of her left breast, across the chest, it read "BOO!". A tattoo was clearly on display in the exposed cleavage, a rose that went down under the shirt. A plaid red and black checked school girl skirt with a few belts and chains hung around her waist. Her legs had on black fishnets, and her feet wore a comfortable looking pair of Adidas shoes. "I almost didn't recognize you!"
"Then, my costume worked!" She said excitedly. "The last thing I wanted was anyone to recognize me and think these Rugrats were mine. I have been helping my brother out, and everywhere people keep thinking these kids are mine."
"Hey," said one of the little boys, and he stuck out his tongue at her. "Auntie, can we go to the next house?" He asked afterward.
"Go," she told him. "I am watching from here. Don't go far and help your sister."
"Deena said you had problems with financing school," Miles told her. "I am sorry to hear that."
"Yeah, that was part of it," She lamented with a shrug. "One of my professors took some crap out on me, too, and it cost me some scholarship money."
"That sucks," Miles agreed, it was taking all his strength not to stare at the once little girl his daughter had gone on playdates with growing up. "Anything I can do to help?"
"Heard about any jobs?" She asked him. "Working nights at the gas station is killing me. I don't mind my parents, but Mom rules with an iron fist."
"I might need a new dispatcher next month," He told her with a smile. "Denise is having a baby, and we are expecting she might not come back or at least not full time."
"Oh my god, really?" Trisha said, excited. "You're serious?"
"Sure, you're a fast learner," he explained as he watched some more kids run up the porch. Miles dropped each one more candy as they did their Trick or Treat shtick.
"You'll let me know?" She asked with for eyes.
"Of course," he said and gave her a piece of candy too. "No, go catch up to those kids. I am sure you probably have a party or something when you're done."
"No, actually," She answered walked back down the steps. "Everyone is gone, off to college. I am not in high school anymore."
"Be safe," he called out with a raised hand. "I'll call you next week about the job. Same number?"
