Derrick never took the stories seriously. The creepy old house he moved into last month was just a quick stop for his family before moving on. But now that his friends have decided to throw a party in this place on Halloween night, bad things start...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
It's at Veronica Brewster's special request that I have just the right amount of decorations and music for our impromptu Halloween bash. Veronica is that girl in school who basically knows everyone and plans everything, so when she agrees to come to my party, the stipulation is made very clear. Veronica will make it "dope AF." I make myself clear that I take Halloween very seriously. Everyone has to dress up. She agrees. Veronica wants to go as a sexy witch, a costume that I tell her is way too cliché, but my words fall on deaf ears, and a deadly glare. My first lesson when dealing with the opposite sex, don't tell them what to wear.
Gina didn't have much to choose from in the party store a few blocks away and she was about to give up, so we all stop at the local vintage shop after school.
It's dark in here. The sun's golden glow providing the majority of light, cutting between the litany of Halloween decals on the shop's large picture window. The owner, a kind and raspy-voiced old lady, gave us the run of the place. For her special sale today; candles, incense, decorations, and melodic folk music, really set the mood.
"This place is awesome," Veronica tells us. "They really have everything here, so look around and find what you want. I'm going to help my girl pick out the right outfit."
Robbie and Bradlee seem a bit overwhelmed. They never hung out with girls before, especially not pretty ones. They definitely haven't gone shopping with a girl other than their moms. My boys and I are playing it cool though. We're lounging by the cashier with our hands in our pockets. Bradlee is beatboxing to the scratchy folk tune on the speaker system. Robbie is nodding along to the remix, his eyes squinting and lips poked out as if he's about to drop bars. Okay, this is awkward.
Bradlee stops suddenly, "Yo Derek, The Blair Witch Project."
"Bram Stoker's Dracula." I reply.
"Damn!" There's a pause. Then a terrible look of embarrassment on Bradlee's face as he comes to realize, "I could've gone with 'The Birds'."
"You should've gone with 'The Birds'."
Ah yes, the game; where Bradlee and I challenge each other with our favorite pieces of pop culture in alphabetical order. The minute someone goes out of order or picks something that is undeniably lame by popular standards, they lose. We played three times this week and I haven't lost yet. Naturally, the stakes are subject to change with every game. It's safe to say that Bradlee is not looking forward to sneaking up on our shop teacher, Ms. Englund, and licking that hairy mole on the back of her neck.
After waiting here for what feels like a lifetime, the girls come out of the changing room. Gina has on an old sheer skirt with lots of antique jewelry. She has her hair tied up in a wrap, some Romani earrings and a wicked pair of steampunk boots that gave her costume that final touch of badass. When the girls approach, Gina does the, 'what do you think' spin.
