Jimmy Wu

Moonlight sprinkles on the ground. The cold wind howls through the street, extinguishing the fire in the pumpkins. People have decorated their houses with spider webs, zombies and ghosts. It is Halloween.

After a busy day in the office, Justin returns to his apartment with little energy saved for the Halloween night with his wife, Jain. It is dark in the apartment, and smothered by silence when he opens the front door. Normally, the light would be on and he would get a warm hug from Jain, but not today. Justin frowns and yells, “Darling, are you there?” He pauses for a few seconds waiting for an answer that doesn’t come. 

Justin takes off his leather jacket and hat, hanging them on the clothes tree. Coldness soon flows through his body and raises goosebumps. He puts his hands together tight and keeps blowing warm air onto his stiff fingers. It’s uncharacteristically cold. He tries to turn on the light switch from the wall, but it doesn’t work. After playing with the switch several times, he murmurs: “That stupid power has run off again!” 

Red candlelight flaring in the dining room draws his attention. It must be the decorations for Halloween, he thinks. He slowly walks to the table but finds no one there. Where is Jain? Shockingly, he sees some clotted blood on the floor. He clutches his fists tightly. 

After he remembers it is Halloween, he shakes his head and derides himself. Justin follows the trace of blood to his bedroom, but he is not letting himself worry. But what he sees there makes his soul jump out from his skin: Jain lays on the bed on her chest. Her hair is dirty and messy just like the old wizard in the movie. The white bed sheet is contaminated by dry bloodstains. Justin trembles like an old broken machine. He wants to scream but feels like something has stuck in his throat. 

He then hears a weak and hoarse voice from Jain: “I got you this time.” Justin sits on the ground with his pale face and says, “Babe, your tricks really scared the poop out of me.” But the figure on the bed does not turn over.

Suddenly, his phone rings, and Justin pulls it out from his pocket. Oddly, it is a call from Jain. He stares back at the figure in his bed, his forehead dripping with sweat as he clicks the green answer button with a tremulous finger.

“Honey, would you open the door for me. I think forgot the key. It is freezing outside…”