To Whom I Fell For

Chapter 18: Halloween

I carried Leyva from my aunt's house. She was dressed as a pea in a pod. Bryn followed behind me holding Kaylin's and Shiloh's hands. Kaylin was dressed as a corpse bride, Shiloh was dressed as the Mad Hatter, Mick was dressed as a skeleton, and Bryn and I were in giant teletubbies costumes. I was the green one as Bryn was the yellow.

Mick, Shiloh, Kaylin, and I all carried bags to hold the candy in. I carried Leyva's for her since she would drop it along the way.

The sun was gone, though the sky was still lit a medium blue.

"Ok we'll travel around the block staying on this side of the street. When we reach a cul de sac, we'll go to the other side. We're only going to trick or treat until 9. It's 7 right now. You have two hours. Don't walk ahead of me. Stay with Bryn and I. Don't eat any candy until we get home. Understood?"

They all nodded.

"Good," I replied. "Move out,"

We all went from house to house, slowly collecting bits of candy. The people in this town were generous and a lot more houses participated in Halloween than my town ever did.

The light of the sky slowly left and the sky grew black. The stars were hidden behind a thin layer of clouds. 

I turned to Bryn. "So what type of cancer did your dad die from?" I asked delicately.

Bryn was quiet a moment. "Adenocarcinoma of the stomach. Its the most common of stomach cancers. About 90-95% of stomach cancers are adenocarcinoma. We caught it too late. He had a significant amount of weight loss. Pains in his stomach. He didn't really like eating. He had indigestion. It became a regular thing. He got sick a lot with random colds and flus but his doctor said his "flus" were just vomiting because of his stomach pain.

You see, adenocarcinoma is a cancer originating in glandular tissue. The tissues affected are...um...part of a larger tissue category known as epithelial. Epithelial tissues line skin, glands, cavities of organs and such. This epithelium comes from the ectoderm, endoderm and-er- mesoderm in the fetus.

Adenocarcinoma cells do not necessarily need to be part of a gland but may possess secretory properties," Bryn paused. "I suppose you don't care,"

I smiled. "You know a lot about this don't you?"

She shrugged. "I did my research while he was in chemo. He died not long after his first chemo session. We were too late. A lot of the time, people pass off stomach cancer symptoms as just flu symptoms or cold symptoms. Unintentional weight loss can be explained by the effects of their continuous flus. People just pass it off as an every day thing. The only time they actually get checked out is when their stomach pains become severe,"

Mick appeared then. "We're at a cul de sac," she informed me.

"Alright, other side," I told them.

They all ran for the next house. I smiled, then turned my attention back to Bryn. "So...what stage of cancer was he?"

"Stage 4. It spread from his stomach to his bones and...other areas." her expression was unreadable but she seemed to want to get off the subject.

I had one more question. "Does his cancer mean you can now possibly get it?"

Bryn looked away. "My chances of getting it have increased but that doesn't mean I'll get it. Even if I do, I'll know and I'll get checked out and I'll get treatment."

"Chemo?"

"Well there's surgery, radiotherapy, and/or chemotherapy. It must all depend."

I nodded.

We looked ahead and I counted all my siblings to make sure they were all with us. They were.

A group of middle school girls passed. They were all dressed as dead cheerleaders.

I rolled my eyes. Typical.

Bryn caught my reaction and giggled to herself.

I smiled and lifted Leyva higher onto my hip.

Joy built up inside me at the thought of my ability to make her laugh.

I looked to the next house that Mick and the others were approaching.

Thick fog rested over their grass and spooky music played from a hidden stereo.

I smiled as Kaylin was hesitant to go up to the door.

Shiloh had taken Leyva's bag and collected candy for her.

"Darius!" a small voice called my name.

I looked over to Kaylin again.  She was looking over to me and holding her hands out. "Scared." she said simply.

I smiled warmly and handed Leyva over to Bryn. "hold her for a minute?" I asked.

Bryn nodded and I turned my attention back to my 4 year old sister.

I walked up the sidewalk quickly and took Kaylin's hand. "Let's go, baby girl," I said. She wrapped her fingers around my palm and I walked her to the steps.

"Trick 'r treat," she whispered, thrusting her bag out for candy.

After getting the candy, I walked Kaylin back to the street and met back up with Bryn. Mick and Shiloh were already back at the street and waiting at Bryn's side.

I smiled. This was the first Halloween I found enjoyable.

I dropped the cancer subject and Bryn and I continued the night by speaking about the costumes we saw go by. We rated them on a scale from 1 to 10.

Some were really good. Others were just kids under sheets. 1 for originality. 3 for effort.

It was fun. Especially with Bryn.