One Halloween Night

One Halloween Night

The two-story house was big and old. Made entirely of brick, it stood out from the other small clapboards on the block. Each window on the first floor was made of stained glass, right down to the small diamond shaped window on the front door.

The house was dark; not one light flickered inside or outside. It looked as if no one was home. The large full moon, already rising in the inky, black sky, was the only light visible. A wrought iron fence with a matching gate surrounded the house, making it seem as if it was right out the Addams family television show.

"Well, what do you think, Ronnie," I asked my best friend. "Should we knock on the door?"

"I don't know, Sam" she replied. "It looks so dark and deserted. Maybe it's haunted."

We stood outside the gate, wondering if we should knock on that big front door. If we didn't do it now, we never would. We had both agreed that this was our last year. After all, ten was a little too old to go out for "tricks or treats."

"It does look haunted," I whispered, as if some spirit in the front yard was listening. "Maybe we should wait. It's getting late and you know how my mom worries."

"No," Ronnie said, pushing curly black hair away from her pudgy face. "We have to do it now."

We looked at each other, then turned our eyes back to the big brick house. I wound some short brown hairs around my fingertip.

"Okay" I said, "but we can't stay long."

Ronnie nodded. I reached for the front gate and lifted the latch. It let out a long, loud squeak. We walked up the path and a black cat ran out. As we inched closer to the front door, I felt a tugging at my sleeve.

"Come on, Sammy," Ronnie said. "Let's get out of here."

"Too late," I answered and knocked on the door.



I wasn't sure what would happen next. Maybe Lurch would come out. Maybe a couple of ghosts would escape or some witch would kidnap us and eat us for dinner. There was no answer. I knocked again, this time confident that no one was home.

"No one's here," I said. "Let's go."

And then the door opened. My heart started to pound.

What happened next was something I never expected. A kindly old woman with silver hair appeared. She had the most beautiful blue eyes I ever saw.

Wait a minute! Didn't this all seem familiar? What story was that about a witch disguised as a kindly old lady who wanted to throw two little children into an oven? Or how about that other story, the one about . . .

"Come on in, young ladies," she said and she smiled at us. She did not wait for us to say "Trick or treat."

 Uh, oh I thought, I'm not going in there.

But something about her smile changed my mind. Besides, Ronnie was pulling at my sleeve again. She pointed at something inside the hallway. We went in to have a better look.

Inside, the house was beautiful, not at all like the haunted house we thought it was. In the hallway stood a large wooden table filled with all kinds of candies and goodies. Candles burned at either end, giving the room a cozy, warm feeling.

"Go on," the old woman said. "Take whatever you like."

We filled our bags with goodies, thanked the woman, and headed for the door. We were so excited we almost forgot to wish her good night.

"Good night," she said. "Now you young women get home safely." The old woman waved and closed the door.

Outside again, the darkness reminded us that it was late and that we should be getting home. Nothing had happened; there weren't any ghosts, witches, or ovens. Lurch did not even show up.

"Wow," Ronnie said, opening her bag. "That was great...all that candy."

"Yes," I agreed, "I can't wait to go there again next year."

Ronnie nodded excitedly, as we both forgot that we had promised ourselves this would be our last year. We said good night and hurried home.
 
About "One Halloween Night"
This story is based on two real life incidents. The first was the haunted house. It was this house that my girlfriend and I thought was haunted, probably because it was different from the rest of the houses on the block. The house was further away from where my family lived and my friends and I could only trick or treat around our neighborhood.

I based the inside of the house on a smaller house we visited on Halloween night. It was closer to where we lived in relation to where the "haunted house" was. The woman that answered the door was not old and did not have white hair. It was beautiful inside and the atmosphere put us at ease. We actually felt cozy and warm.

The table with all the candies and goodies was real. I had never seen so much food on one table before.

There were pennies on the table that we could take for our UNICEF cartons. The woman really did let us choose what we wanted for "treats." That was the first and last time I would ever have that opportunity. It left a big impression on me.