Upon Death

 

 

 

The little boy gleefully made his way to each house, speed walking up and down their paths, for each resident would give handfuls of candy to him once he recited the phrase,

“trick-or-treat!”

Some of them smiling and complimenting his outfit. He was a ghost in the most usual way. A small white sheet put over his head which drooped down to his legs, and little eye holes cut out. He’d often give cheap scares by crying out, “boo!”

And the adults would act out being scared and laugh with him. Then he would leave their house and repeat the same actions sometimes.

Occasionally, he would see other kids that’d have unique costumes, and he’d stop just to admire them. Giving great compliments and sometimes even giving them some candy. Then he would move on, still eager to gain a few pounds worth of candy.

He’d just got a handful of bite sized kit-kats and large tootsie pops when he saw someone with the best costume of all.

Someone he thought to be a tall stranger with a tattered black robe with a hood that concealed his face. And a scythe with a blade which looked almost real. He gasped with surprise and hurried to him.

“Mister!” he called out. The stranger turned his head towards him, and watched the little kid scramble over to him. The boy paused and took time to admire his outfit. It was a little bit torn, and the end dragged behind him, but to the boy, it added even more authenticity to it.

He raised his arms in excitement, “your costume is awesome! Where did you get that!? Boy, it must’ve been expensive! If--If I had known it was out for sale, I would’ve bought for all of my saved up money!”

The stranger looked around, ultimately confused, but said nothing. The boy caught his glances,

“oh, if you’re looking for my parents, they said they were going to be busy, so I went on alone. But don’t worry!”

The boy exclaimed, still very pleased with the stranger’s attire. Then the boy gasped at the realization that the stranger didn’t have a trick-or-treating basket.

“You don’t have a bag or anything! How are you supposed to get loot from the adults?”

He asked. But the stranger said nothing and glanced down to his feet, as if in thought.

“You don’t talk much huh?” The stranger glanced back up to the boy.

“That’s alright! My parents are the same! Here!” The boy dug through his bag and picked out a bite-sized twix, though it was his only one, he reached out his arm, politely giving him it. The stranger looked at the boy’s hand, then back to the boy.

“What’s the matter? It’s not poisonous! Honest!”

The stranger slowly extended his hand from his elongated sleeve, revealing his hand, made entirely of bone. The boy dropped the candy in his hand and exclaimed. “Whoa! Awesome hands! Those came with the suit?!”

He awkwardly nodded, questioning if it was the correct notion.

“Cool! They look so real!” The boy said once more. Then the boy glanced around, realizing it was beginning to become sundown. “Darn…we don’t have too much time…” He turned back to the hooded stranger. “Hey! Let’s go by some houses to get some more loot!”

The stranger paused for a moment, then realizing what he said, he glanced behind him, peering down the street at the houses. “Yep! Those houses!” The stranger turned back to the kid and pointed at a specific one. “You wanna go to that one?”

He nodded once more. “then let’s get a move on!” The boy started with a quick walk, tugging at the stranger’s sleeve, he followed the boy. “so, do you know the people there?”

he asked, glancing over his shoulder to the stranger. He nodded once again. “okay! I hope they have good candy…” The boy dragged along the tall man as they approached the door of the house the stranger pointed at. The boy rung the door bell and waited, prepping his bag for the entry of more candy.

The door swung open, and an elderly man smiled at the young boy. “A ghost! Please don’t haunt me mister ghost, I’m just an old man…” “I won’t haunt you! Unless, I get some candy please!” The old man smiled, “we have a deal!” He reached inside and picked a few pieces from a bowl near the door, and dropped them inside the bag and smiled again.

“now, no haunting, you hear?” “yes sir!” The old man chuckled, then saw the figure next to the boy.

The boy dug through his bag, observing the candy he just received. Never noticing the stranger next to him extended his arm and touched the elderly man on his shoulder. And whispering something inaudible to the boy.

“soon.”

The elderly man eye’s were widened, and his mouth was agape.

Without looking, the boy said good-bye and left, along with the figure. The elderly man stepped back inside his house without responding, and silently closed the door behind him.

The boy reached the sidewalk then glanced over to the stranger. “what did you get? Anything good?” The stranger opened his hand again and showed the same twix he had been given by the boy. “Nothing? Why that’s rude…do you wanna go back?” The stranger shook his head in protest. “are you sure?” He then nodded. The boy sighed, disappointed his new friend was given nothing. “maybe the next house?”

He asked, the stranger nodded and pointed to another. “okay….let’s go…” He grasped the stranger’s sleeve again, but didn’t drag him away. On their walk, the boy thought of the stranger next to him, and so he questioned. “why do you cover your face? Are you afraid someone might call you ugly?”

The stranger looked down at the boy but didn’t respond. “hmm……do you not want people to see your face?” He nodded at the question, then the boy glanced down, it reminded him of what sometimes happened to him. “yeah….sometimes my dad says that to me…so I wear this so he doesn‘t get mad……” The stranger didn’t know how to respond, he glanced down as if in thought.

Then they reached the walkway of the house, and the boy sped walk up to the house. Ringing the doorbell, he prepped his bag once more. The stranger stood by his side.

The door opened to a young woman, she had long blonde hair, makeup which didn’t anything to improve her looks, and perfume which was potent enough to cause a nose bleed..

She swung around, clearly inebriated, with a beer bottle in hand. Then someone from inside the house called out, “Close the damn door!” She glanced over her shoulder. “Shut up! I’m about to tell em’ we have nothing!”

She turned back around to the kid, seeing his pathetic outfit, she scoffed. “We don’t have nothing lil’ boy….” “Nothing?” He said in disappointment. “Nope…Nada…Zilch…So scamper on an’ bother some else…”

The man inside the house yelled again. “Stop fucking around! Get inside the damn house! Now!”

The lady whispered a curse word under her breath and stormed back inside the house, slamming the door behind her.

The boy could hear their faint arguing. Swear words often used by his parents. He closed his bag and walked back unto their walk path. The stranger followed close by. “shucks…well this stinks…”

He turned to the stranger beside him. “you didn’t get anything…” the boy peered back down, looking into his bag. He picked out a few pieces more and held out his hand. “Here…if they won’t give you candy, I will…” He dropped them in the stranger’s hand again. “I’m sorry that’s all you got…but at least we can wait until next year….right?” He looked up at him again, and he nodded. The boy glanced back to the sky and saw it was sundown. “I’m supposed to be going back now…my parents said so…” The boy glumly walked down to the sidewalk, his head hung low and his feet dragging. He turned around to the stranger, “you coming?” The stranger glanced downward. “you can’t either?” He glanced up to the kid again. He paused for a moment then walked towards him.

The stranger seized apprehensively once the boy embraced his legs. “bye…” The boy said, saddened he was leaving his only friend. The stranger grasped him by his shoulders and pulled him away from his legs.

The boy sniffled and peered up at the stranger, staring at where his face would be. He let go of the boy’s shoulders, realizing his actions. The boy then began his walk home.

The stranger watched as he glumly shuffled his feet and was soon growing further away.

It was his job today, the boy, the elderly man and many others. But for the first time, he watched with solemn, as the boy drew further. He had something he’s not felt before. He knew of it, but never knew how it felt.

He then glanced down and opened his hand, finding the candy the boy had given him. He glanced back up, but didn’t see him.

He immediately began his way down the street in a quickened pace.

He turned as he reached the intersection and stood as the boy crossed the street. He could see the car picking up speed, as the careless driver was closing his eyes, and head banging to his music.

The boy never could’ve seen it in time to save himself. Already it was only a few feet from sending him through the air and unto the pavement, crumpled and bloodied, killing him in an instant.

But he grasped his scythe and slammed it into the pavement. The clack resonating through the air, sending waves through ground.

The boy was shoved out of the way and the car swerved, it began to spun around, stopping in the middle of the intersection, into the path of an oncoming truck.

Before the trucker had time to react, it collided with the sports car. The metal grinded against each other and tore, the sports car barrel-rolled multiple times and stopped around 30 feet from the initial point where they collided.

The boy rose to his feet, his sheet laid on the ground. His bag spilled out it’s contents. His lower arms had red patches which grew darker with the more blood being drawn. He was shocked from what happened, but he had no major injury.

The trucker ran worriedly towards the inverted sports car. As he reached the crumpled wreck, he dropped to his knees and peered inside the broken window, his face twisted with disgust as he saw the grisly mess, he rose back up and immediately dialed 911.

The boy’s arms stung with pain, but he disregarded it and started his way towards the accident. He hung by the sidewalk and watched the man frantically calling for the paramedics, not knowing what he could do to aid anyone.

He never realized until later that on his sheet laid a small twix, his only twix he had given to the stranger. Who stood from afar off, but then dissipated as distant ambulance sirens filled the evening air.