Imperfect Life: Arc 1

Chapter 26

The next few weeks went by without much trouble. Crys laid low, making sure to stay home whenever there was a full moon, and refraining from gallivanting on all the other nights. School was just as annoying as ever, but overall everything was peaceful over those weeks. Now, however, it was Halloween. Eager and excited, Brandon woke up earlier than usual. He quickly got out of bed and went to his closet to shuffle through his clothes in order to find what he was wearing for today. Since it was Halloween, school was allowing students to go while wearing a costume. Brandon found what he was looking for, his costume. He put it on and got ready for school like normal. He was dressed up like the captain of a starship, and he was quite eager to see what Crys would be dressing up as. Brandon made his way out of his house and waited for Crys outside so they could walk to school together like usual. As he waited, his mind began to wander, thinking about the many possibilities of what Crys could have dressed up as. One idea that he was particularly fond of was that Crys dressed up as a werewolf. Brandon thought it'd be funny, though only he and Crys would know why. Eventually, Brandon spotted someone walking towards him, clad in a blue hoodie with dark blue pants. It was Crys, but she wasn't wearing any costume. Once she got close enough to hear him, Brandon began to question Crys.

"No costume?" Brandon asked, a little disappointed.

Crys shook her head.

"Why not?" Brandon continued.

"Just didn't feel like it." Crys said, though she sounded like she had other reasons.

"Really? But you could have dressed up as a werewolf!" Brandon said, hoping to get a smile out of Crys. Instead, all Brandon got was a disappointed frown.

"I'm already stuck like that as-is! I don't have to dress up as anything I'm not, okay!" Crys lashed out, angry.

In response, Brandon lowered his head and glanced down. "Oh." He said, feeling a bit bad.

Crys looked at Brandon. "Sorry." She said with a slightly apologetic tone. "I just, don't want to dress up." Crys continued. "I'm already a werewolf, I just don't want to be anything else."

Brandon was at a loss for words, not really knowing how to respond to Crys. "Mind if we started walking to school now?" Brandon asked, deciding to just drop the conversation entirely.

"Sure." Crys said as she and Brandon started walking. "So, uh, what about you?" Crys asked Brandon. "You the captain of a starship?" "Yeah." Brandon said.

"I like it." Crys said with a small grin. "You look good."

"Thanks." Brandon said, now also grinning. "You look, uh, nice too. Even if you aren't in costume." Brandon tried complimenting Crys back, with a slightly nervous tone.

"Oh please." Crys said, brushing off the compliment. "This is the same kind of clothes I always wear. Hoodie, t-shirt, and some generic pants. It's not like I'm wearing anything fancy like a dress."

"I know." Brandon replied. "Still, I think you look nice anyways." Brandon said, this time with a more confident tone.

"Thanks." Crys said while glancing over at Brandon. She saw that he looked slightly embarrassed and had an ever so slight blush. Crys smiled and decided not to attempt a flirtatious comment in response.

When they both arrived at school, Brandon and Crys saw that a lot of the other students had decided to dress up. Not everyone was dressed up though, so Crys didn't feel that much more out of place than usual. The morning classes went by without a hitch, with most people just talking about their costumes or their favorite horror film during class. During lunch, Brandon and Crys sat next to each other while Tomas sat across from them at the lunch table. Tomas was dressed up like a pirate, with a very intricate and detailed costume that looked quite expensive. He had a hat and coat with gold outlines and buttons, as well as the typical eyepatch.