TDF Short Stories

4. Happy Halloween

5 years ago

Chrissy thumps down the stairs, completed calculus homework under one arm, and notices her 12-year-old little sister standing at the window, face very close to the glass.

"Dawn!" Chrissy says. "You can look outside, but if you touch the glass, you'll get finger prints or nose prints on it, and Mom won't like that."

"I not touching it," Dawn says.

"Okay, good," Chrissy says. She sets down her homework on the steps and walks over to the window to join her sister. It's too early for trick-or-treating, so there must be something else capturing Dawn's attention. "Is the neighbor cat in our yard again?"

"No."

Chrissy furrows her brow. "What are you looking at?"

"They not here yet."

Chrissy turns to Dawn. "What are you waiting for?"

"Friends."

"You have friends coming? I didn't see anything like that on the calendar."

"Rora. Rora, Gabby, Debba. They coming."

Ah, so Aurora, Gabby, and some other girl. Chrissy guesses that Dawn has talked to the girls at school about this. Dawn does this a lot.

"Dawn, remember, for things to work out, the parents have to talk to each other. If you only talk to your friends, and not parents, then the plans might not happen, because your friends might not have a ride."

Dawn looks at Chrissy in shock. "No! They coming!"

Chrissy places a hand on Dawn's shoulder. "Hey, I can call their parents and see if it can happen. I have numbers for Aurora and Gabby, but I don't have the number for your other friend. Do you have it?"

Dawn runs off, presumably to find it.

While she waits for Dawn, Chrissy grabs her cell phone and calls Gabby's parents. Gabby's mother tells her that Gabby is trick-or-treating with cousins tonight, and can't come. Chrissy assures her it's okay, and she hopes Gabby will have a wonderful time.

Dawn barrels into the room as Chrissy hangs up. "I got it!" Dawn proclaims, waving her weekly planner around.

"Gabby has plans already, so she can't come trick-or-treating," Chrissy says.

Dawn scowls. "But she said!"

"Gabby must have forgotten that she's going with her cousins. You'll be able to hang out with her at school, though, and during your play date next weekend. The parents planned that one, so it's definitely going to happen."

Dawn thrusts the dirty weekly planner at Chrissy. "Rora. Debba. Coming trick or treating. Plan it!"

Chrissy raises her eyebrows. "What's the magic word?"

"Pleeeeease," Dawn insists.

Chrissy grabs the planner. "Sure, I'll do my best." She flips through the pages and finds the page where several of Dawn's friends have written their numbers. Aurora's number is there, as well as a number from a girl named Debra.

Dawn points to Chrissy's cell phone. "Please?"

"I'll call Aurora's family first." Chrissy dials the number and puts the phone to her ear. It rings several times.

"Hello?" says Mr. Rosenberg.

"Hi, it's Chrissy, Dawn's older sister," Chrissy says. "Dawn was wondering if Aurora could come trick-or-treating tonight. I know it's short notice, but we'd be happy to take her off your hands."