Chapter 19
Audrey
Halloween has always been my favorite holiday.
When I was younger, it was the only one my mother would put effort into. She loved the grotesque decor, over the top costumes, and of course: taking me trick or treating. Her favorite part was dressing up in the most outrageous pair of costumes.
From what I remembered, she was very eccentric.
Her dark curls were usually highlighted with vibrant colors, and bold eyeshadow always outlined her light brown eyes.
At night, she’d reach for a Tim Burton animated film before a classic Disney one to keep me occupied.
Sometimes she snuck in a cheesy horror movie with effects so bad it’d make me laugh instead of cry.
Halloween was the one night of the year she was able to embrace the parts of herself she was often shamed for. The same parts she’d passed down to me.
This year, Carter told me he had a very special Halloween-themed date planned. After the week of radio silence I’d punished him with, he swore he was going to use the holiday weekend to make it up to me.
I spent the second half of the afternoon locked in my room, perfecting my costume-like makeup and putting final touches on my outfit. When I’d dug through my closet for inspiration, I flipped through all of my old outfits. Harley Quinn. Bride of Chucky. Emily the Corpse Bride. Starfire. Catwoman.
All missing their better halves.
Eventually, I picked one of my favorites and asked Carter if he’d be willing to dress up along with me. The best he said he’d do was an all-black ensemble to stay somewhat true to the other character’s outfit.
At the moment, I lied and said it was fine, but truthfully, I was disappointed. Dressing up was one of my favorite parts of Halloween, and he barely wanted to do that.
I didn’t let myself wallow in the disappointment for too long. I wasn’t going to let anything ruin my favorite night of the year.
“Oh, ho, ho,” Dad yelled as I walked down the steps, finished with my look and on my way to meet Carter outside. He and Papa were sitting on the couch, watching a movie as they waited for Trick-Or-Treaters. “Don’t you look stunning?”
Papa nodded. “It’s like you stepped right out of Tim Burton’s mind.”
I’d decided to be Sally from the Nightmare Before Christmas.
I sketched stitches along my mouth, collar and arms. Painted my lips in red and applied long, dramatic eyelashes atop a smokey eye.
I threw on the dress from an old costume and tucked it in at some places to outline my figure.
Topping it all off, I styled a long, straight red wig on top of my head.
I grinned at the compliment. “Thank you!” I gave both of them a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be back later!”
“Have fun!” Dad yelled, contrasting against Papa’s “Be safe!”
I skipped out the door and down the path towards Carter’s car.
He glanced up from his phone as I climbed inside. “Oh, you were serious about dressing up, huh?” He asked.
“What made you think I wasn’t?”
He shrugged. “You say a lot of things you don’t necessarily mean.”
I sighed. Here we go again… “We don’t have to go out tonight,” I told Carter. “I can stay home and hand out candy if you’re going to act like this.”
“Like what? Like my hurt feelings are being ignored? Like the woman I’m dating isn’t claiming me?”
I almost scoffed. “I hurt your feelings by hanging out with my friend, someone who I’ve known for years? Are you serious?”
“I told you I didn’t like you around him.”
“And like a good little doll, I’m supposed to listen, right?” I shook my head. “You know what, forget it.” I reached for the door handle.
Carter’s hand darted out and grabbed it. “Wait, wait,” he said. His voice was soft, but his grip was a bit too tight. “I’m sorry. It’s just…I really like you. You’re beautiful and smart and kind and unique - one of a kind in all the best ways. And I don’t…I don’t want to lose you.”
“I am right here,” I assured him. “And I don’t plan on going anywhere. But, you’ve gotta stop with the jealousy and possessive shit.”
“Alright, alright. I will. I promise.”
“And if you’re so worried about me claiming you, why don’t you just ask me to be your girlfriend?”
“I just remembered you said you had a lot going on and wanted to keep things casual. I didn’t want to overstep your boundaries.”
“Well, just so you know, if you did ask, I might say yes.”
His brow rose. “Might?”
“Yeah. Because you, sir, still have some making up to do.”
He grinned. “I think our plans for tonight are perfect for that.”
Releasing me, he put the car in gear and started driving to our first destination.
It was a small restaurant with a Halloween overlay.
The bulbs were filled with red lights. Cobwebs with fake spiders hung in the corners.
The wait staff shuffled around in gory makeup, resembling an ensemble of zombies.
The music playing from the ceiling speakers were all eerie instrumentals.
Even the menu was altered to reflect the horror theme.
Not even five minutes in, and I was in love with the effort the restaurant put into the theme.
As we sipped on our blood red cocktails, Carter and I chatted about our old Halloween memories. He told a lot of stories about his adventures on mischief night with his friends and all the havoc they caused. Apparently, he used to be quite the trouble-maker.
In return, I told him a few stories about previous Halloweens, but all of them included Max. And with every mention of his name, Carter’s smile grew dimmer and dimmer.
“All this was after I moved in with my fathers,” I said, trying to change the subject, but not in the direction I meant.
“After?” Carter asked. “Where did you live before? I mean, I know you mentioned you were adopted, but I thought as a baby.”
I averted my eyes. “Lots of places. Before that, I lived with my mom.”
His brows came together. “What happened? Did she…?” He trailed off, unsure if the question was safe to ask in its entirety.
“No. She isn’t dead. At least not that I know of.
She just…” I sucked in a breath as the weight whenever she came up crushed my chest. “She had a lot of demons, and she lost more battles than she won with them. I, um…I tried not to call the ambulance when she’d take too much.
She told me not to. But, one day, she wouldn’t wake up and I couldn’t find help, so I…
I had to. The social worker at the hospital told me I’d saved her life.
And I was proud of that for a moment - before I realized I was going to lose her for good, anyway.
That instance was the final straw that made child services deem her unfit.
Our case worker had wanted to place me in a ‘more stable’ environment for a little while by then.
I didn’t actually get it when I entered the system.
Not at first. I bounced around foster homes for over a year before I ended up with Rashad and Benny. ”
“Oh,” Carter murmured. “Have you…have you seen her since then?”
Shaking my head, I took a long sip of my wine.
“No. She, uh…she never came to any of the attempts for a supervised visit. Which didn’t exactly surprise me.
Our last conversation felt very final. She…
she told me she loved me. And although I truly believe she did, we both knew it wasn’t as much as she loved her demons. ”
“Damn. I’m…I’m sorry, Audrey.”
“Don’t be. I’ve been in a lot of therapy. Processed a lot of my shit. And I’m okay now.” Or at least as okay as anyone can be after all that.
Carter frowned at the change in my mood, and quickly changed the subject to horror movies to lighten it.
I silently thanked him for not pushing. My past before my fathers was always hard to discuss.
It still haunts me from time to time. Very few knew about it.
Even some of my boyfriends in college, after Max, didn’t know about it.
But, Carter seemed like a safe enough space to let some of that weight down onto.
After all, it was about time I started letting him in. I just hoped that, if he ever saw every ugly scar that lay beneath my skin, he’d still think I was beautiful.
After dinner, we drove over to one of the clubs downtown, also hosting a Halloween theme.
The loud music pulsed through my ears the moment we stepped inside.
Neon lights flashed from the ceiling, offering brief illuminations of the patrons milling around the club.
Waitresses dressed in seductive vampire costumes weaved through the crowds, carrying trays of drinks.
On the dance floor, people dressed in a variety of costumes danced to the quick beat and sipped on the drinks in their hands.
Their energy was infectious, spreading good vibes throughout the entire room.
Carter held on tight to my hand as he towed me through the crowds towards the bar. We had a few drinks at the restaurant, but nothing strong enough to give us the courage we needed to get out on the dance floor.
Thankfully, the bar wasn’t too crowded. We easily found two open bar stools and ordered our drinks.
We started with a few shots. I almost laughed at Carter’s impressed look as I threw them back without gagging or complaining about the burn.
“What?” I asked.
“I didn’t take you for a party-er.”
I scoffed. “I studied medicine for over ten years. I couldn’t afford to be a party-er. But, I sure did go on a few bar crawls to celebrate passing exams.”
He chuckled.
While we waited for the shots to kick in, Carter nursed on a Coke and Rum while I sipped on a margarita. Together, we watched the patrons grooving on the dance floor and laughed at some of the outrageous moves we saw.
“Don’t tell me you dance like that,” I teased, jutting my chin at a man attempting to impress a woman with the horizontal version of the worm.
Carter smirked. “Nah, I’m smoother than that,” he said. “See the trick is…” He reached underneath the bottom of my bar stool and pulled me close. Pressing his lips against my ear, he whispered, “You gotta bring them up close.”
My cheeks grew warm as his breath brushed against the sensitive skin of my ear. “Mhm. And then…?”
He lay a hand on my back and slid his palm down towards my hip. “You hold them tight. Let them feel what you’ve got to offer.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Hm.” I turned my head to look at him. “And what is it you have to offer?”
His gaze dipped to my lips. “I can show you better than I can tell you.”
Before I was able to respond, the bartender appeared beside us on the other side of the counter. He set down another margarita besides my near-empty one. “Compliments of the gentleman up there,” he said, nodding towards the upper level on the other side of the room.
Confused, I followed his gaze. I raked over the small groups sitting in the VIP sections for a moment before my eyes fell on the figure leaning over the railing.
In the flashing lights, the first thing I made out was his suit.
Black with a wide opening on the chest, exposing his white button up underneath and bow tie with long tips and a bat’s head in the middle.
White stripes ran vertically down his jacket and pants.
His face was covered in white paint. A strip of stitches similar to mine ran across his mouth, and black circles surrounded his eyes.
Even after all these years, he was still the Jack to my Sally. The one the world hailed but didn’t understand. The one I always saw clear as day. The one who saw through the parts of me I thought were broken. Simply meant to be.
Smiling, I gave him a wave to thank him for the drink.
He raised his glass to me in return.
Behind me, Carter scoffed. “This motherfucker,” he grumbled.
“Hey, hey,” I told him as I turned my head to face him. The alcohol I consumed was starting to make my belly warm and my head fuzzy. “Be nice.”
Carter tossed back the rest of the liquor in his glass and gently slammed it on the countertop. “Come on,” he said as his fingers encircled my wrist. “Let’s dance.”
I let Carter tug me off of my bar stool and tow me onto the dance floor.
As we claimed an empty spot, Carter grabbed my hips and flushed my body against his. The rhythm of the music possessed our bodies, coercing us to move to its quick beat.
The upbeat song was only on for a moment before the DJ flipped the switch to a slow, sensual tune.
Carter grinned at the convenient change. His grip on my hips tightened as I slowed the swaying of my hips to match the new beat. He lowered his head and buried his face into the nook of my neck.
Blood scorched up my face as I felt his lips pepper soft kisses on my skin. I looped my arms around his shoulder and laid one of my hands on the back of his neck.
Pressed together, I could feel nearly every inch of his muscular body, including the bulge growing harder against my thigh.
With my warm belly and fuzzy head, I welcomed the sensation.
I didn’t even know how long it’s been since I’ve gotten laid.
I wouldn’t mind if Carter took me back to this apartment after this and we fell into bed together.
It’d be a good distraction to take my mind off of everything else that’s been going on.
And it’d make me feel good. After the past few months of adjusting to life back home and coping with my father’s illness, I think I deserved that much.
Carter’s kisses trailed up my neck to my cheek and made a swift turn to my lips, capturing them in a sensual lock. His tongue slipped in as he did so, offering a soft lap at my lips to open them further.
I met him halfway the second time, inviting his tongue inside and greeting it with my own. Our tongues tangled amidst our kisses, growing faster and hotter with every second.
I pushed myself harder against him, practically grinding against him, desperate for every euphoric sensation he was able to offer.
His chest rumbled as he groaned into my mouth. His hands slithered down from my waist to my thighs and gave them a tight squeeze.
Take me home, I was ready to say. I needed to get out of here. Have him take my clothes off. Fuck me until I forgot about every worry I had.
But, before I could, I felt a hand wrap around my arm. It pulled me away from Carter, flinging me a few inches backward.
My brows stitched together, and I struggled to refocus my eyes on the back of the white-striped suit now standing in front of me.
I opened my mouth to speak, to ask what the hell he was doing, but the words got caught in my throat as his elbow cock back with sharp, deliberate precision.
Then, his fist flew directly into Carter’s face.