everlong| hocus pocus

03. name

UPON ENTERING HER EMPTY HOME, Jasper felt an immediate wave of relief wash over her, as if she hadn't realized how tense she'd been all week. Everything had strangely fallen into place for Jasper lately. On Monday evening, she had successfully persuaded her parents to allow her first boy-girl sleepover, an achievement made even more surprising by the fact that it was scheduled for a weekday. Then, on Wednesday night, her parents had unexpectedly announced their two-week absence. And to cap it off, Friday evening saw her sneaking off to a party for Halloween night. Though she found herself alone now, she took solace in the familiar comfort of her crappy old Halloween decorations. It was a rare moment of solitude for Jasper, who, as an only child, often found herself overwhelmed by her parents' constant attention. Their absence was a welcome respite, one she secretly wished could last forever.
     Meanwhile, Max returned home less cheerfully. He stormed into his room shoeless and flung his cap and jacket onto the floor. His little sister, Dani, immediately pounced on him, still pestering him about trick-or-treating. Despite his protests, Dani had managed to win their parents over with the help of some vigorous screaming.
     Hours passed, and Jasper couldn't contain her excitement. One perk of her parents' absence was the freedom to buy tight leather pants and shirts without them on her back. God knows she would never dress up as Elvira unlike Allison. So a simple slightly sexy black cat would do. She admired herself in the bathroom mirror, suddenly aware of how stunning she looked without her usual huge, chunky, white knit sweaters she wore all the time. Jasper roamed through her mother's makeup case to find red lipstick. She smiled and carefully held it like an ancient artifact. Puckering her lips, she applied a touch of red lipstick, feeling a surge of confidence wash over her.
     As Jasper hung up the phone with Allison, it rang again. "Hello?"
     "Jasper! How are you holding up my love?" Jasper winced at her mother's voice. She reluctantly answered to her mother's voice, which always seemed to grate on her nerves, especially when nagging.
    "Oh, I'm doing fine." Jasper answered dryly.
    "I can't believe this is the first Halloween we won't see you."
"Yeah, I really don't know how I'll live." Jasper joked as the landline cord stretched while she comfortably scrunched up on the couch. Their conversation quickly escalated, Jasper's attempt at humor backfiring as her mother snapped at her.
     "You know, I work so hard for you. Why would you say it like that?"
"Mom, it was just a joke-"
"I don't wanna hear it. You know, I don't care anymore. Do what you want." Jasper felt her blood boil and her skin began to crawl. She just can't understand why her mom was so mad? Then again, she's always mad.
     Frustrated, Jasper ended the call abruptly, feeling her temper rise. "Goodbye mom." Only music could soothe her now, and she turned to The Smiths' album, finding solace in its familiar melodies.

______

Meanwhile, Max's Halloween was progressing painfully slowly with Dani, who insisted on continuing their trick-or-treating adventure despite his reluctance. "Lighten up, Max." Dani said, hopping down the steps of the house she just retrieved candy from.
     "Can we go home now?" Max complained.
     "No." Dani grinned.
     Their evening took an unexpected turn when Dani confronted a rowdy group of boys, including Jay and Ice. The boys yelled and squealed, smashing pumpkins the crowded streets. Max intervened to protect his sister, trying to steer her away from the troublemakers. His efforts were futile, however, as Dani stood her ground against the boys' taunts. Max felt embarrassed yet protective, a mix of emotions he struggled to navigate in front of his peers.
     "Ding-ding. Ding-ding." Ice said to Dani who tried to walk past.
     "Stop and pay the toll, kid." Jay stood up.
     "Ten chocolate bars. No licorice."
     "Dump out your sack."
     "Drop dead. Moron." Dani spat, eyeing daggers at the two boys. The rest of the group oohed and ahed at the young girl who had rolled her eyes. 
     "Yo, twerp. How'd you like to be hung off that telephone pole?" Ice threatened, bending down to Dani's level. The little girl scoffed in Ice's face.
     "I'd just like to see you try, because it just so happens I've got my big brother with me." The boys oohed and ahed again as they tried not to laugh. "Max!" Dani called. Max looked over quickly, taking off his sunglasses. Max sunk to his toes with embarrassment as Jay and Ice laughed hysterically.
     "Hollywood!" Jay yelled. "Oh no!" Jay and Ice hugged each other, pretending to be scared and shaking. "Oh, no!"
     "So, you're doing a little trick-or-treating." Jay smiled crazed. "Ding-dong."
     "Woooo!" Ice yelled, running around like a crazy person.
     "I'm just taking my little sister around." Max said, placing Dani behind him.
     "That's nice. Wow, I love the costume! But what are you supposed to be? A new kid on the block?" Jay laughed, holding onto Max's shoulder for support of his loud laughter.
     "For your information, he's a Little Leaguer!" Dani screamed at the boys.
     Once night had casted its sheet of darkness over Salem, The Weiss girl rushed out of the bathroom and out the door with a spare change of clothes in her bag. The sound of her mothers black heels hitting the pavement She looks next door to see her favorite old lady, Mrs. Lopez's perfectly carved pumpkins smashed and destroyed.  From a block away, Jasper spotted Jay and Ice causing trouble in her neighborhood, a sight that stirred unwelcome memories. Unfortunately, Jasper had history with these two that she was trying to forget. She rolled her eyes wondering why Jay was hanging around her street again. Jay and Ice look up at the girl.
     "Hey, hey!" Jasper yelled towards Ice and Jay.
"Damn, that outfit is hot! Where are you heading to?" Jay said, walking closer to Jasper.
     "Nunya." Replied Jasper dryly. "The hell are you doing smashing Old Lady Lopez's pumpkins?" Before Jay could think of an answer, Jasper looked to Ice leaning towards a little girl in a witch costume. Then up at Max who was silently pleading with his eyes for help. was surprised to see Max nearby. Her instinct to defend him kicked in, admonishing the boys for their bullying. With a mixture of bravado and indignation, she challenged their behavior, refusing to let them intimidate her or anyone else.
     "Ja—"
      "And what are you doing bullying a little girl like this? This is so low, dude. Even for you." Jay was left speechless. Jasper moved onto Ice. The boys behind laughed, hitting each other because they found this whole scene incredibly amusing. "You think picking on little girls is funny? Just because you want candy?" Ice rolled his eyes at the girl. Jay looked to Ice, willing to give up. Ice wasn't the one who had the hots for Jasper. He wasn't giving up without a little girl's candy bag.
      As Max and Dani retreated from the confrontation, Ice halted them again, demanding a toll for passage. "Wait a minute. Everybody pays the toll." He says to the girl.
     "Stuff it, zitface." Dani spat.
     "Why, you little—"
     "Hey!" Max yells, eager to protect Dani from further conflict. "Ice, here. Pig out." He shoved his bag of candy to Ice's chest. "Come on, Dani, let's go," Max says takes Dani's hand. "jerk..." he mutters under his breath. Relieved, they moved on, leaving Jay and Ice to ponder Jasper's unexpected defiance.
  "And Hollywood, the shoes fit great!" Ice snickered. Jasper turned to Ice.
     "Oh shut the hell up you're one candy bar away from going into cardiac arrest." Ice stopped, slowly taking his hand out of the bag. "No, it's okay. Eat up." She sneered with a grin before walking away. Jasper had thought Max and his sister had walked away, so when she saw Max She as Dani went to the next house, she was certainly surprised.
     "Thanks for the help back there. I owe you one." Max chuckled, walking with Jasper to the next house. She smiled back, trying not to stumble in her mother's heels.
     "Yeah, gimme as many snickers as you can for school tomorrow." The two share a smile.
     "Gotcha."
     "I'm really sorry about them though. Ernie doesn't like me as much as Jay. Like, at all."
Max nodded, putting his hand in his pockets. "Can I finally get your name?" Max asked, grinning.
     "Jasper. Jasper Weiss..." Max looked up at the full moon.
     "Jasper..." Max repeated as if it was foreign.
     "That's my name. I'll see you at school tomorrow?" Jasper smiled warmly.
     "Yeah, if I'm not dead by tomorrow."
The blonde furrowed her eyebrows. "Well, live to see November because I'm counting on you for those snickers." Max chuckled, waving goodbye like a complete dork.
     "Is that Allison?" Dani asked with a smile, watching from a distance.
     "That's Jasper." Max sighed.
     "I like Jasper."
Max nodded, adjusting his hat. "Me too."
     "You should've punched that guy." Dani continued.
     "He would've killed me."
     "At least you would've died like a man." Dani remarked.
     "Hey! You just humiliated me in front of half the guys at school!" Dani looked up at a furious big brother Max. "So collect your candy and get out of my life!" Dani felt tears jerking out of her eyes.
     "I wanna go home now!" Dani yelled running down the steps of the house and runs away with Max following with a wave of guilt overthrowing him.

_____

     Max watched as Dani threw herself down on a haystack and began to cry, her face turning red and her lungs becoming heavy. Max made a sad expression before taking a seat on the bay next to his younger sister. "Dani, I'm sorry. It's just that I hate this place. I miss all my friends...I wanna go home!" Max yelled, digging his hands into his face then tracing his lanky hands through his brown, fluffy hair.
     "Well, this is your home now, so get used to it." Dani whimpered, trying to calm herself down.
     "Yeah..." Max agreed. "Give me one more chance?" Max sighed, his guilt continuing to grow. He never liked seeing his sister sad, especially when it's caused by him.
     "Why should I?"
     "Because I'm your brother." Dani looked up to see Max giving her an over exaggerated pout. She laughed, making him laugh as well. Max stood up, pretending to be amazed by something. "Woah. Check that out." Dani's stood up as well, trying to find what Max had been looking at.
     "What?"
     "Something just few across the moon..." Max quickly grabbed Dani's shoulders, making her squeal. The two laugh together as Max let go.
Dani's laughing fades off before taking Max's hand. "Let's go, jerkface."
Max's initial frustration softened as he comforted Dani, realizing his safe instincts sometimes clashed with her spirited independence. Their bond strengthened amidst the chaos of Halloween night, leaving them both with a newfound understanding. The siblings look up at the house they had been talking in front of. "Wow!" The two said in unison.
     "Check out this house."
     "Eh. Rich people." Dani said, unimpressed. "They'd probably make us drink cider and bob for apples." The two look at each other; nodding before they walked in.
     They peek through the door. "Trick or treat!" Max looked to the big cauldron full of full sized candy bars.
     "Jackpot!" Dani smiled, shoving as many candy bars as she could into the bag. Max dug into the cauldron looking for as many snickers he could. Alas, he found none. Throughout Salem, the Halloween festivities continued, with Allison and Jasper upstairs, unaware of the Dennison siblings scouring for candy below. Little did they know, Allison and Jasper were upstairs doing their makeup for the parties.