Halloween One Shots

NIGHT OF THE LIVING COSTUMES (Winner)

Contest Profile: Paranormal

"Just for a few hours," my neighbour pleaded. She smiled. "That's all I ask."

I grimaced. Attending a Halloween party was not part of tonight's plan. After last year, Halloween was a day I could do without on the calendar. Not the only one either. However, Ophelia's smile and pleas were exceptionally sweet. And that she'd considered inviting me at all...

"One hour," I said.

"That works," she replied, grinning.

Ophelia was the only one who could elicit any feelings from me. Maybe I had a crush on her. I've never really had one, so, I can't be sure. I'm not sure about a lot of things lately. However, looking at her smile and that excited glint in her eye, I was almost certain that I'd find myself at a party tonight. There was also a chance that I'd just find myself standing against a wall, bored, next to Ophelia's pet pythons. I did like them and their cold, emotionless eyes. More like looking into a mirror than anything else.

"Can I at least go get myself a costume, or whatever?" I asked.

"If I let you go back in there, I won't get you out here again," she replied.

She's good.

I yielded, grabbing a hoodie with a jack-o-lantern graphic, and following her out to the party down the street. Hers was the last house in the cul-de-sac. It was an old neighbourhood, flanked by a park that was also a quaint cemetery. Orphelia's house used to be a tiny old church that some yuppy couple bought and flipped into a beautiful modern home. It had a weird vibe around it, making it the most ideal place to host epic Halloween parties.

The party was actually decent. Pretty standard costumes, the guests weren't obnoxious, the food was tasty, lots of drinks, a chilled atmosphere... it was, dare I say, fun. I sipped my drink and smiled.

"I thought I wouldn't get to see you smile all night. Which is odd for a Jack-o-lantern."

I turned to the owner of the voice. I'd been secretly watching her most of the night. Although, if she was here, raising my heartbeat to land speed records, maybe I wasn't being so secret.

Shoulder length brown hair, light brown eyes, oval face, high cheekbones, and dark olive skin. Her voice sent chills through me. It was low and slightly husky. I could listen to her talk all night. She was dressed in a sexy fallen angel costume, complete with black wings and a halo. The dress top was sheer, laced at her collarbone and ending in a choker collar. The bodice was black and hourglass shaped with an intricate pattern down the front. The black circular skirt fell to her thighs in a zigzag hem. The gorgeous look was finished with black, laced, stiletto boots that reached just below her knees.

"Hi, I'm Joanna," she said, offering a hand.

"Lily."

"You don't talk much, do you, Lily?"

I shook my head.

"That's okay," she replied. "I mostly here to dance, anyway."

She somehow got me on the makeshift dancefloor.

And I danced!

I hadn't for so long. But my limbs and my blood remembered rhythm. My mind emptied, a feeling that was completely foreign to me. Suddenly, all that existed was music, movement, and Joanna. Her moves were beyond breathtaking. How she rocked her hips, her footwork, her smile, the body rolls... I could keep up, but barely. I kept getting distracted by the way she'd flip her head and look at me, her eyes half hooded.

"You're good!" she exclaimed, grabbing my hand to go get more drinks.

"You're not too bad yourself," I replied.