WEEK 4 FOR @fictober @today-in-fic
She returns from her lunch break with two Rite Aid bags worth of party mix candy, all the good stuff: Reeses, Twix, Snickers…He can’t resist pilfering some and manages to wrestle two pieces out of the packaging before she swats him away.
“Don’t tell me this is a late addition to my birthday present, Scully,” he teases around a half-chewed fun size bar, the caramel already sticking to his teeth, “The birthday smacks were more than enough–not to mention the cake.”
“No, it’s for the kids in my neighborhood,” she explains without a beat, neatly tying the plastic bag in a knot to prevent further thievery, “Most of them live in my building.”
“If I come by wrapped in a bed sheet would you welcome me as your friendly neighborhood ghost?” He grins lecherously. She lets out a sharp sigh, which recently he’s found means she’s trying not to laugh.
“Do you want to help?” The question comes unexpectedly, and he’s surprised when he immediately offers a genuine “Sure, what time?”
He arrives at her apartment as though it was one of their ordinary cozy Friday nights, brandishing pizza and a VHS tape–Dracula, to honor the holiday. She already has the candy poured into bowls; one chocolate, the other all kinds of tart and artificial fruit.
He stands back a little ways for most of the evening as she dashes about in the foyer every time the door beckons her. She introduces him to Dawn, the shy but sweet ten year old daughter of Mrs. Young from two floors up. She playfully rawrs back at a group of toddlers bundled in dinosaur costumes. She good naturedly tries to guess the obscure outfits of a handful of droll teenagers. All the while he watches her, marveling at her warmth and feeling humble in the fact that this woman shares her life with him in so many capacities.
He sees the glint in her eyes every time she turns to look at him. Her face is open, happy–he knows the loss of her fertility is far, far away tonight and that she is simply basking in the joy of children and candy. It warms him straight down to his toes and for not the first time he silently promises her to someday make her quiet dream of having children a reality.
They continue on for a good few hours, vaguely watching Dracula, sharing occasional soft kisses, and running to answer taps at the door. Laughter is as abundant inside her apartment as outside in the children-wreathed halls.
Finally around 10:30 the trick-or-treaters seem to dwindle and come to a stop. The knocks on the door cease and the thudding of little feet up and down the hallway fade. He’s grateful, as he soon won’t be able to supress his yawns any longer. She stands up groggily, moving to pick up their discarded wrappers and grease-soaked pizza box. He clasps her wrist, telling her he’ll get it.
She smiles sleepily and thanks him for helping her hand out sweets. He wants to quip that she did all the candy doling, but instead he kisses her and tells her to go to bed.
She’s already fast asleep on her stomach, buried in her bountiful sheets and blankets by the time he changes into sweats and brushes his teeth. She doesn’t even stir as he presses a kiss to her head and settles in beside her, knowing full well she’s set the alarm early enough for some leisurely morning sex before work.
His last thought as he drifts into a deep sleep is that the holidays will soon be coming.
For the first time since childhood, he can barely wait.
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