Re-Run The Halloween Party

I used to write, kinda, sorta. I wrote this one for Halloween 4 years ago. (No, my writing is never perfect) Older bloggers will find this familiar, but there are some newcomers now - for me to bore. Hang in there. It's short and complete.

The Halloween Party
 
The Halloween party was over. It had been fun, the jokes were ghoulish, the costumes from fabulous to gruesome. Julia and Frankie were the hostesses with a flair for the spectacular. Their Halloween parties were a time when they could really show off their talents. This year was no exception. Nearly everyone had rented costumes from them.

Four years ago, Julia, an up and coming costume designer, met Frankie, the best in the biz make-up artist and together they began the Fantasy to Fearsome costume shop down on Second Street. Julia spent her days sewing her creations, plus the normal pageant dresses, wedding dresses and the like. Frankie’s days were spent making up cool masks for various occasions and photographing glamour shots of the sometimes, naturally hideous housewives, who wanted a gift for their husbands. They knew going into the business that it wouldn’t all be fun and games. It would be impossible for the two of them to make a living just creating Halloween items.

Julia, dressed as the wicked stepmother from Snow White, was standing in the midst of the mess wondering where Frankie had gone. She better not have the idea that I am going to clean this up by myself! She went upstairs to their apartment to clean off her face and get out of her costume when she heard giggling from Frankie’s room. Crap! She’s got some guy in there. I hate to break up her fun, but work has to come first. Julia knocked on Frankie’s door. The giggling stopped. 

“I know you’re in there. Come help me clean up the showroom and then you can romp all you want.” she said, pulling off her dress and throwing it over a chair.

Julia walked into the bathroom to peel off her fake nose and wash her face. She pulled the pins out of her long brown hair giving it a quick brush through before putting it into a ponytail. Walking into her bedroom to get her work clothes on, she could hear the giggling again. Now, she was angry. 

“Get your act together and come downstairs to help me! You have five minutes or I’ll come up here and drag your butt out!”

She stomped down the stairs. Frankie was always picking up some poor slob for a night of fun. Then she would toss him out the next morning with yesterday’s newspaper. Taking a few garbage bags out of the box, Julia started to pick up all the paper plates, cups and leftover food, filling the bags and wrinkling her nose up at some disgusting, unknown slime on a few of the plates. Some people brought their own refreshments to go along with their costumes. She remembered seeing a few aliens at the party. It was probably theirs.

She was getting angrier by the minute, dragging the wet-dry vacuum she started to do the floor. Her heart was pounding. She could hear it in her ears. Frankie’s name was going to be mud or off the door. For crying-out-loud, she knows I can’t move the racks back in here by myself. It’s hard enough doing this much alone!

“Frankie!” she screamed, “Get down here now! Nobody is that good. I need help with these racks, Frankie!”

Julia couldn’t hear the bed anymore. She put the vacuum away and came out of the storeroom when she heard the stairs creak. It’s about time. When she came through the curtains of the storeroom though, a man stood there in a homemade Dracula costume.

“I’ll help you move the racks,” he said kindly, “Frankie is a little indisposed at the moment.”

“Sorry about the comment,” Julia said, noticing how handsome the stranger was. “The racks are here in the storeroom, they just need to be wheeled out and put in the proper place. I’ll take the front and if you would, push them into place.”

“It won’t be a problem, I’m happy to be of service,” the strange man said, speaking with an interesting accent.

OK, I can see why Frankie took so long, nice stuff!
It didn’t take them too long to make the shop look normal again. He even put the mannequins and display boards up in the windows. He was quite the gentleman.

“Maybe we should go upstairs and find out why Frankie is taking so long to come down,” he suggested.

“Well, I’m done here, it looks great. Thank you for your help. I’ll just let you out the door and see to Frankie myself. I do have a few things to say to her that a gentleman shouldn’t hear,” Julia said, as she opened the shop door to show him out.

The stranger’s face clouded over, but he left quietly. He heard the locks click behind him. He had entertained hopes of her asking him to stay and have a taste of this pretty lady too. The lights were going out and he could hear the other locks engaging. Watching though the window, he could see her ascending the stairs. Moments later, he heard her scream.

The End