When Jandro arrived at the Rivera house, he saw that the car was parked half-in and half-out of the garage and the front door was open. As he approached the steps, he had to jump hastily to one side to avoid colliding with Carl and two suitcases. Carl continued on his way to the car without looking at Jandro, so Jandro went straight up to the front door.

'Hello?' Jandro called, as he peered around the frame of the open door. 'Kev, are you ready?'

Kevin appeared from the living room and grinned at Jandro; he nodded in approval to see that his guest was carrying a large plastic bag.

'Did you manage to get everything?' Kevin asked.

'Sure did,' Jandro grinned back at him. 'Yours and mine are both in here, and I've got five dollars in change for you too.'

'Great,' said Kevin. 'Let's go upstairs and get to work!'

'Your parents are still here,' Jandro pointed out.

'They won't disturb us – they're too busy getting ready for their little vacation.'

'Okay then, let's do it.'

Ten minutes later, Carl and Beth were moderately alarmed to hear the unmistakable sound of Kevin screaming in pain. When they heard a second scream, they both ran to the foot of the stairs.

'What the hell are they doing up there?' said Carl.

'I don't know,' said Beth. 'Kevin said Jandro was going to help him with his Halloween costume, but...'

The storey above reverberated once again with Kevin's strangled cries. Carl and Beth exchanged a worried look.

'Should I go up there?' said Carl.

'I don't know,' said Beth. 'Maybe you should.'

They then heard the sound of Kevin and Jandro collapsing into hysterical laughter. Carl adopted an expression of complete bemusement.

'Well, they seem happy enough,' said Beth. 'Maybe we should just leave them to it. I'll finish getting James ready while you take out the last of the luggage, okay?'

'Okay,' said Carl.

Just as they were about to go their separate ways, they heard Jandro screaming in pain several times, followed by more hysterical laughter and a good deal of crashing around.

'I do wonder what Kevin's costume is,' said Beth.

'Maybe it's best not to ask,' said Carl. 'I'll get that stuff out to the car.'

When Carl returned from this errand, he found Beth once again standing at the foot of the stairs, this time with James cradled in her arms.

'They've both gone into the bathroom,' said Beth, 'and the shower's on!'

'Oh my God,' said Carl. 'I remember saying once that Kevin would never two-time Oscar, but now I'm not so sure.'

'I'll have a word with him when he comes out,' said Beth. 'Can you get James settled in the car?'

Carl nodded, and carefully took hold of his younger son. A few seconds after they had disappeared through the front door, Beth heard the bathroom door opening upstairs.

'Kevin!' she called. 'Could you come down here a moment, please?'

Kevin and Jandro both appeared at the top of the stairs. Kevin was dressed in a towel robe and had a shower cap over his hair. Jandro was still wearing his normal clothes, although his trousers were on back-to-front.

'Hi, Mom,' said Kevin, as he reached the bottom of the staircase. 'Are you guys ready to leave?'

'Yes, we are,' said Beth. 'Honey, is everything... okay up there?'

'Everything's fine, Mom,' said Kevin. 'We're just working on my costume. Sorry if we were making too much noise.'

'No, no – just so long as there's nothing wrong,' said Beth. 'Now you're absolutely sure you don't want to come with us, aren't you?'

'Perfectly sure, Mom,' said Kevin. 'I want to have my Halloween party.'

'Yes, of course,' said Beth. 'Kevin, you will be careful, won't you? I know you've never been the kind of kid who's likely to set the house on fire or start experimenting with illegal substances when he's left on his own, but I also know how wild the six of you can be when you get together.'

'You don't need to worry that you're leaving us without adult supervision,' Kevin grinned. 'Jandro's eighteen now.'

'I'll make sure the place is still standing when you get home,' said Jandro.

'I just want the six of us to have fun together while we still can,' said Kevin. 'This time next year, Jandro and Lucy will be in England, Ella will have a full college schedule, and Michael could be planning to be on Mars for all I know! I'm gonna miss us all hanging out together and I want to make the most of the time we have left.'

'Oh, honey,' said Beth, 'of course you do. I'll stop worrying and leave you to your fun.'

Carl appeared in the doorway, casting glances back at the car every few seconds.

'Are we ready to roll?' he asked.

'Yes, we are,' said Beth. 'Goodbye, Kevin. See you in a couple of days.'

'Bye, Mom,' said Kevin, giving her a hug. 'Give Granny and Grampy my love, and tell them I'm looking forward to seeing them at Christmas.'

Beth nodded, and went to join Carl. Carl nodded to Kevin, who nodded back, then the front door was closed and Kevin and Jandro were left alone.

'Granny and Grampy,' Jandro giggled, giving Kevin a punch on the arm.

'Fuck you!' Kevin laughed, punching Jandro in return so that he almost fell over. 'I've called them that my whole life and I can't get out of the habit, okay?'

'Okay, dude,' said Jandro, 'whatever you say. How is it now?'

Kevin opened the front of his robe and looked down at himself.

'It's still a little red,' he said, 'but I think we can move on to the next stage.'

'Great!' Jandro grinned. 'I've been looking forward to this.'

Jandro opened the front door to find Michael and Ella standing on the other side. Michael was wearing a horned helmet and a long blond wig on his head, and Ella had dyed her hair red. Oscar had already arrived and was mooching around in the living room doorway, dressed in a leather tabard and leather trousers. His shoulder-length hair was dyed a silvery-grey colour.

'Hi, Jandro,' said Ella. 'Nice skeleton costume.'

'Thanks,' said Jandro. 'But I didn't realise it was gonna be so tight when I bought it – I think it's seriously damaging my chances of ever having kids. Come on in; let me take your coats.'

Michael and Ella entered the house. As they took off their coats, it was revealed that Michael was dressed in a plastic breastplate, laced-up knee-length boots and a large pair of furry shorts, while Ella was wearing green leggings and a purple bra.

Just as Jandro was about to close the door, he noticed that a figure in a brown leotard and a cardboard dragon head was approaching the house, dragging a cardboard tail behind it.

'Wait!' Lucy's voice emerged from the cardboard head. 'Don't close the door – I'm here!'

'Hi, Luce,' said Jandro. 'Great dragon costume.'

'Thanks,' said Lucy, closing the front door behind her. 'I'd have been here sooner, but I had to walk because John's car doesn't have any gas in it.'

'Well, we're all here now,' said Jandro, 'so it's time to introduce our host! Kev, you can come down now!'

Kevin appeared at the top of the stairs and began to make his way down. Everyone started to laugh and make noises of approval. Kevin was wearing purple knee-length shorts, and the rest of his body was covered with green make-up. His hair was dyed a different shade of green. When he reached the bottom stair, he treated his guests to a flex and a roar. They all laughed.

'That's fantastic, Kev,' said Lucy.

'Thanks,' Kevin grinned. 'I think you've all told me at some time or other that I'm like the Incredible Hulk in some way, so now I am him!'

'You didn't do the body paint yourself, did you?' asked Ella.

'No,' said Kevin, 'Jandro did it. He also waxed me.'

'Not that there was a huge amount of hair to take off,' said Jandro, 'but we thought it would make the body paint go on more easily, and it did.'

'We waxed Jandro's legs too,' Kevin grinned, 'just for fun!'

'I've never been in so much pain,' said Jandro. 'I had to wear my pants back-to-front to stop them rubbing.'

'I bet that skeleton costume rubs though, right?' said Lucy.

'Really badly,' said Jandro. 'And it's too tight in all the wrong places. But I don't care – it's Halloween and we're gonna have fun! Let's put on the Halloween CD and have a dance.'

'First I want to make sure I've worked out what everyone's costume is,' said Kevin. 'Me and Jandro we all know... Lucy, you're obviously a dragon.'

'Yes – a Chinese dragon,' said Lucy, 'here to bring you good luck and great wisdom, Kev.'

'Thanks,' said Kevin, flashing her a grin. 'Mike, you're a Viking.'

'Which Viking?' Michael demanded.

'Um...' said Kevin.

'Can't you see my hammer?'

'Um... oh, yes I can! Make sure you keep that thing in your belt, Mike, okay? I guess it means you must be Thor.'

'Right,' Michael grinned. 'You and me are both Marvel superheroes, Kev.'

'Ella, you're Ariel,' said Kevin.

'That's right,' said Ella, 'I'm the Little Mermaid!'

'You don't look so little to me,' Jandro remarked, casting a significant look at Ella.

'Jandro, you're naughty!' Ella grinned, adjusting her purple bra slightly.

'How about me?' said Oscar. 'You can tell who I'm meant to be, can't you?'

'Um, well... you're obviously a ghost,' said Kevin.

'Which ghost?' said Oscar.

'Er... oh, are you Vigo?' Kevin grinned.

'Of course I am!' said Oscar. 'If he'd had his way, he'd have been using my body to take over the world about now, so I couldn't really come as anyone else, could I? Danny helped me with the hair dye.'

'Everyone looks excellent,' said Kevin. 'I bought a disposable camera so we can take some pictures of each other, but let's go into the living room and have a dance first.'

As Kevin put the Halloween CD back in its case, Oscar, Jandro, Lucy and Michael arranged themselves around the room on sofas and chairs, each drinking deeply from a paper cup. Lucy had abandoned all the cardboard parts of her costume. Ella was sitting on the floor, doing some calculations with a pencil and paper.

'So, these are the final standings in the arm-wrestling contest,' she announced, 'in descending order: Kevin, Michael, Oscar, Ella, Jandro, Lucy.'

'Jesus, how embarrassing,' said Jandro. 'I should've had you, Ella!'

'Maybe you'll get to have me later on, Jandro,' Ella laughed. 'You never know your luck!'

'Everyone happy just to sit and relax for a few moments?' said Kevin, perching himself on the arm of Oscar's chair. 'I'm whacked!'

There were murmurs of assent from all his guests.

'Do your parents know that we're all staying the night, Kev?' asked Michael.

'Yes, they do,' said Kevin. 'And I've promised them we're going to have nothing but good, wholesome fun.'

'Oh, that's a shame,' said Ella. 'I guess your dad was worried we were gonna have some kind of an orgy, huh?'

'Maybe,' said Kevin.

'He's probably hoping we will have an orgy,' said Oscar, 'and it'll make you realise that you actually want to have sex with girls after all. He still doesn't like me, you know!'

'He does like you!' said Kevin. 'He's just... adjusting.'

'I think he should've done that by now,' said Ella.

'So do I,' said Oscar.

'Well, I don't really care what he thinks,' Kevin shrugged. 'Actually, I find it kinda... Jesus, I can't believe I'm gonna say this out loud!'

'Say what out loud?' said Jandro. 'You just have to tell us now, dude!'

'I find it kinda exciting, doing stuff that he obviously doesn't really approve of,' said Kevin. 'I mean, it's fun to defy your parents, isn't it?'

'I'll say it is!' said Lucy.

'I can't help laughing when I think about how he must be feeling about me planning to go on a homosexual backpacking tour of Mexico,' Kevin confessed. 'It must really piss him off!'

'A homosexual backpacking tour of Mexico?' Oscar queried.

'I'm sure that's what my dad thinks of it as,' said Kevin. 'But still, I think you'll really like it, man.'

'I'm fascinated to know what the difference is between a homosexual backpacking tour of Mexico and any other kind of backpacking tour of Mexico,' said Oscar.

'Well, here,' said Kevin, sliding onto Oscar's lap, 'let me show you.'

Kevin reached down the side of the chair and pulled the lever to activate the reclining mechanism, whereupon he and Oscar were tipped into a horizontal position. Following their lead, Michael slid a hand inside Ella's bra. Ella gave him a look, then they started to kiss. With a glance to either side and a quick shrug, Lucy and Jandro allowed their lips to meet and their hands to start exploring each other.

'Wait!' Kevin suddenly exclaimed, jumping off Oscar in a sudden burst of movement. 'Just wait a minute, everyone! We'll end up having an orgy at this rate. We've got to control ourselves and have some good, non-sexual fun.'

'It's these costumes that are the problem,' said Lucy. 'They're making us lose our inhibitions.'

'You mean they're haunted?' said Oscar.

'No, they're not haunted – it's simple psychology,' said Lucy. 'We're all dressed as someone or something else, so we're letting ourselves get carried away because we don't really feel like ourselves.'

'I guess there's something in that,' said Jandro.

'Of course there is – just look at us!' said Lucy. 'Kevin and Michael look like they're fathers' rights campaigners going in for Mr Universe, Ella's got her fun bags on display for all of us to enjoy, and we can see every curve and crease of your junk through that bodysuit, Jandro!'

'Hey, I really didn't realise how tight this was gonna be when I bought it!' said Jandro.

'Plus you're rocking some exquisite camel toe yourself, Luce,' Ella added.

'Well, exactly!' said Lucy. 'The only one of us who's even vaguely sensibly dressed is Oscar!'

'Oh, cool,' Oscar grinned. 'Does that mean I win the prize for the best costume?'

'I'll give you your prize later,' said Kevin. 'Lucy's right; we'll have to try extra hard to control ourselves. So, does anyone want to do anything apart from have an orgy?'

'Hey, I have an idea!' said Ella. 'I want to see who wins a fight between Thor and the Incredible Hulk.'

'You'd better watch The Incredible Hulk Returns, then,' said Lucy.

'I think that fight was a tie, wasn't it?' said Jandro.

'I'm definitely up for recreating it, and for giving it a more conclusive result!' said Michael. 'How about you, Kev?'

'I don't really want to fight you right now, Mike,' Kevin demurred. 'I've never done that kind of thing in front of an audience before.'

'Is that the real reason, Kev?' said Michael. 'Or are you afraid I might finally get the better of you?'

'No,' said Kevin, smiling slightly, 'I don't think that's very likely.'

'There you go, then,' said Michael. 'Besides, you like play-fighting, don't you?'

'I do,' said Kevin. 'I do like play-fighting.'

'Great!' Ella grinned. 'I'll set out the arena and lay down the rules. Kev, do you have some string?'

'It's just as well we did stop ourselves from doing anything before,' said Ella, as she laid out the string on the floor. 'I didn't bring any... protection. Did you, Mike?'

'No,' said Michael. 'This costume has no pockets.'

'That right there is a huge advantage of homosexual relationships,' said Oscar. 'No danger of unwanted pregnancy!'

'Hey, you're right!' said Michael. 'Maybe Ella and Lucy can put on a show for us after me and Kev are done with ours – a different kind of show, I mean. I'd sure like to see you two girls doing everything you can to not get each other pregnant!'

'Mike, you fucking pervert!' Ella laughed.

'You're right, Oscar, but then it works both ways,' Jandro said thoughtfully. 'What are you gonna do when you actually want a baby, huh?'

'There's loads of options for same-sex couples, and there'll be even more in the near future,' said Kevin. 'I've read a lot about it.'

'You have?' said Oscar.

'Yeah,' said Kevin. 'You know, just out of interest... in medical stuff, I mean.'

'I know how you two could have a baby,' said Ella. 'I would definitely carry one for you.'

A few seconds of stunned silence followed.

'Someday, I mean,' Ella added. 'Not tonight. I really like you both, I think you're a great couple and I'd be thrilled to give you a gift like that.'

'Well... thanks, Ella,' said Kevin. 'That means a lot.'

'I don't get how it would work,' said Michael. 'I mean, where would the egg come from?'

'From a donor,' said Ella.

'Not from you?' said Michael.

'No,' said Ella. 'An anonymous donor.'

'And who'd be the father?' said Michael. 'You know, biologically.'

'Well, I don't know,' said Ella. 'Probably we'd get some jizz from both of them and a bunch of donor eggs, mix it all up together, stick it inside me and see what happens.'

Everyone laughed, causing the slight atmosphere that had developed to dissipate.

'It wouldn't have to be you, Ella,' said Lucy. 'I'm sure my uterus is just as good as yours, if not better! I'd really like to carry a baby for them too.'

'Well, we could both give it a try,' said Ella, 'then there'd be twice the chance of something actually happening. Yeah, great idea, Luce!'

'Let's not make any definite plans right now, huh?' said Oscar.

'Yeah,' said Ella. 'Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away. Okay, so this fight – as you can see, I've marked out the arena with string. If either combatant touches the floor outside the string with any part of his body, or disturbs the string itself, he loses. If either combatant is pinned to the floor for more than ten seconds, he loses. And you just keep fighting until one of those two things happens, okay?'

'Sure thing, Ella,' said Michael.

'Okay,' said Kevin.

Michael abandoned his hammer and entered the arena. Kevin came to stand opposite him. They narrowed their eyes at each other.

'You're going down, Kev,' said Michael.

'You wish,' said Kevin.

'Ooh, this is exciting!' Ella laughed. 'The boys are getting tough.'

'Some of them are, yeah,' said Jandro.

'Okay, so... just start when you're ready,' said Ella.

'It's wrestling moves only, yeah?' said Michael. 'So no punching.'

'And no kicking,' said Kevin.

'Give me your best shot, Kev.'

'You first, Mike.'

Obligingly, Michael ran at Kevin and grabbed his shoulders. Kevin mirrored Michael exactly, and they started to grapple fiercely.

'Oh dear,' Ella remarked. 'I'm more turned on now than I have been all evening.'

'Me too, actually,' said Jandro. 'All the testosterone in the air is doing things to me.'

There came a collective gasp as Michael suddenly lost his footing and fell down on one knee. Kevin took a step back to allow him time to recover, but Michael took the opportunity to lunge for Kevin's legs instead.

'Ooh, no fair!' Oscar piped up. 'Michael cheated!'

'No one said they had to step back and wait if the other one fell over,' said Lucy. 'Kevin should've shoved Michael out of the ring when he had the chance.'

Kevin had now grabbed Michael around the upper torso; another collective gasp emerged from the spectators as Kevin lifted Michael off the ground and flipped him onto his back. Michael let out a vocalisation of pain and annoyance. Kevin grinned and was about to jump on top of him, but Michael jumped back up to his feet with a surprising turn of speed and gave Kevin an almighty shove.

'Michael was playing possum!' Oscar objected.

'It's not against the rules,' said Ella, her eyes shining as she watched the fight.

Kevin crashed onto his backside and put his hands out behind him. He turned his head to see that the heel of his left hand was less than a centimetre away from the string.

'He's outside the arena!' Michael declared. 'I win!'

'No way – he didn't touch the sides!' said Jandro. 'The fight's still on!'

'Jandro's right, Mike,' said Ella. 'Keep going!'

Michael ran at Kevin. From his position on the floor, Kevin raised his legs and wrapped his feet around the backs of Michael's knees. There came an almighty crash as Michael was brought to the ground.

'I taught him that one,' Oscar said proudly.

Kevin was now in the process of scrambling on top of Michael, who had not yet quite realised what had happened to him.

'Get him, Kev!' Lucy yelled. 'Smash his face in!'

'That would be against the rules,' Ella pointed out.

'I know,' said Lucy. 'I was speaking metaphorically.'

Kevin had now pinned Michael's shoulders to the floor, and was pushing down on him with tremendous force. Michael squirmed and struggled, but he found that he could barely move.

'One!' Oscar suddenly declared. 'Two! Three!'

The rest of the audience joined in with the countdown. Frowning in determination, Michael started to undulate his body like a snake. Kevin could feel his captive squirming away from him; he was far from sure that he could maintain his grip for the full ten seconds. In a sudden burst of movement, Kevin jumped to his feet, wrapped his arms around Michael and lifted him bodily into the air.

'Yes!' said Oscar. 'Dump him! Dump him!'

Everyone took up the cry. As he lurched towards the string and prepared to launch Michael over the edge, Kevin found himself basking in his friends' mindless adulation. He grinned at them.

'Kevin smash!' he declared, and slammed Michael onto the floor beyond the string.

Oscar, Lucy, Jandro and Ella were in hysterics after Kevin's performance. Buoyed up by their reaction, Kevin started performing a series of flexes, accompanied by bestial roars. His audience reacted as he had hoped, laughing and cheering for all they were worth. As Kevin came over to the sofa, Lucy, Jandro and Oscar hurled themselves on him, and Ella grabbed on to his left arm; they all collapsed in a heap.

'That was excellent, Kev,' said Lucy. 'You were fantastic!'

'The Incredible Hulk always wins,' Kevin grinned. 'You guys should know that!'

Everyone laughed again. Left alone on the floor, Michael dragged himself to his feet. He stared at the laughing mass on the sofa, frowned and then ran from the room, slamming the door behind him.