The Fall season was well and truly in the air...although not to the extent that Fergal was used to back home in Ireland. It was still blisteringly warm, the October chill clearly not a thing to be had in Florida. It was disappointing, the utter lack of change in humidity, colour of leaves on trees or weather patterns. Fergal wasn't often homesick these days, but he did miss the crispness of the Autumn air, the falling leaves from the trees and the myriad of colours they became.

On the other hand, Halloween was considered a far bigger deal over in America, and Devitt's Coffee Shop had gone all out with decorations and Halloween themed sundries and drinks. Fergal hadn't been able to hide his glee at being able to decorate the shop with as many Halloween decorations as he could get his hands on. He'd expected some ribbing from his boyfriend over his childlike enthusiasm, but Sami had been an absolute treasure by taking him out shopping for additional supplies and not once did he seem the slightest bit condescending or patronising towards him at any point. Not even when Fergal put on the infamous Scream mask and attempted to spook an unsuspecting Sami.

Condescending Sami might not have been, but he could at least have tried to act scared instead of laughing at his attempt.

He had no idea how exactly he was going to spend the actual day, but Fergal was hoping it involved himself and Sami dressing up in some capacity. The sheer amount of adorable outfits Sami could potentially wear...the mere idea had Fergal grinning like a lunatic. Sami had been patiently waiting in a booth to the side of the shop for Fergal's shift to end so they could finish off decorating the store together (Sami had brought over pumpkin shaped fairy lights!), browsing his phone and occasionally smiling over at the increasingly inpatient Fergal. Fergal was in the process of finishing off a gingerbread latte for what was potentially the day's last customer when Sami's eyes suddenly widened in excitement, his head snapping up to catch Fergal's immediate attention.

"Hey Fergal, what'cha doing the day before Halloween?"

"Praying we don't run out of pumpkin spice flavouring for the coffees," Fergal smiled warmly at his partner as he closed the cash register, "Other than that…I 'unno, thought we could snuggle down under a pillow fort and have a spooky movie-thon?"

"How'd you feel about going to a Halloween party instead?" Sami motioned wildly with his free hand to his phone, "Bayley's convinced the bosses to throw a fancy dress party for the young'uns we teach."

"Wow! That's…" Fergal paused, forehead creasing in confusion, "Sorry, which one's Bayley again?"

"Ponytail, multiple headbands," There wasn't a hint of recognition on Fergal's face, "Perpetual hugger."

"Oh! Yeah, she seemed pretty cool," Fergal nodded in confirmation, "Yeah, course I'd love to go! We can pillow fort any time of the year."

"Awesome, I'll RSVP us right up then," Sami quickly tapped a text back, "This'll be great…ooh, should we dress-up in sync or would you rather try and surprise each other?"

"I love surprises," Fergal grinned, taking off his apron and hanging it up, "As cute as the dual-dressing would be, 'tis the season for trickery."

"Fair enough," Sami smiled widely as Fergal walked over to his booth, "We can meet up at my apartment after your shift ends on Sunday, I'll drive us over."

"Yay," Fergal extended his hand to Sami, who eagerly accepted it, "So, ready to help spookify this place?"

"Absolutely."

Now all Fergal needed was a costume idea…

He'd almost immediately regretted asking his sister for advice.

"You could go as James Bond," Becky tapped her chin thoughtfully, "You do look pretty snazzy in a suit."

"An Irish James Bond?" Fergal scrunched up his face, "Geez, that'd be silly. Can't think of anything that'd make less sense…"

"A Swiss James Bond?" Becky offered.

"Besides," Fergal tried desperately to ignore that offering, "Wearing a full suit in Florida? I'd probably melt before I got to Sami's apartment."

"Guess that rules just puttin' your Chewbacca onesie on right out," Becky sighed, "This is almost as bad as the time you had to come up with a Twitter name."

"Can I help it that I'm a horribly complex person?" Fergal smirked at his sister, "Maybe I could go as something out of Irish folklore?"

"You do have the right sized ears to be one of the fae folk," Becky chuckled at Fergal's put-out expression, "Wee Fergal the Fairy Prince."

"I dislike you so much right now."

"I'm sure Charlotte has some diamanté studded wings you could borrow," Becky laughed as Fergal began throwing balled-up paper napkins at her, "Ack, don't make a mess of the place, I just brushed up!"

"Well, ye can brush up again, can't you?" Fergal sighed, "Yer not being any help for me right now anyway."

"Sorry, sorry," Becky's laughter began to subside to mere chuckles, "Oh, what about that astronaut gear you wore a coupla years ago? Would that still fit?"

"…yeah, actually…that could work…" Fergal pondered out-loud, "It's still a full suit, but should be airy enough if I just have underwear on underneath…"

"Too much info, Fergal," Becky stuck her tongue out in disgust; "Not exactly a spooky costume though, is it?"

"Eh, it's a kids party, Becky…let them pretend to be the scary ones," Fergal smiled, "I'm more looking forward to Monster Mashin' and Thriller Dancin' with Sami."

"Just don't let your clumsy arse knock any of 'dem kids over," Becky could only laugh as Fergal began throwing balled-up napkins at her again.

Fergal had debated the entire day of the party on whether he should head over to Sami's place in full costume, or get ready there instead. The decision was more-or-less taken out of his hands when his shift at the Coffee Shop ran a little over due to a last-minute rush of people stopping for a coffee before heading out to their own parties that night. Fergal had already texted Sami to let him know he'd be a little late, before hastily putting on the home-made astronaut costume. He had no idea where the fishbowl-slash-helmet had gone in the preceding time, so he'd have to go without. At least the costume still fit…a little extra muscle-mass made the arms and chest a little tight but otherwise he was ready to venture into the great beyond of space.

Or, at the very least, the NXT Step Dance Studio Halloween Party.

Fergal was a bundle of excited nerves by the time he had reached Sami's apartment door. Excited for the party, giddy to see what Sami had chose to wear (it had to be something really cute…a penguin, perhaps? Maybe a Canadian lumberjack…Sami did own at least one red flannel shirt), awaiting the inevitable warm laughter from Sami at his own choice of costume. He knocked the door eagerly, ready for the night's festivities.

…he couldn't say he was expecting Sami to answer the door wearing only what appeared to be black spandex leggings. Hello bare-chested Sami!

"Fergal! Oh, wow, you look great!" Sami grinned as he let Fergal into the apartment, "The most adorable astronaut I've ever seen! And it's handmade! I love it, you look amazing, and your effort is putting mine to shame."

"Thanks Sami…" Fergal's response trailed off as Sami walked over towards a nearby dresser, picking up some kind of mask from on top of it. Those leggings left absolutely nothing to the imagination on a night where imagination was supposed to run wild. Fergal let his eyes roam all over the topless specimen before him, the tights fitting Sami in all the right places, "Sami...not that I'm necessarily complaining, but are you really going to this party dressed like that?"

"Yeah, only in Florida can I get away with this...back in Montreal I'd only end up freezing my nips off..." Sami grinned, fussing with the mask in his hands, "Hang on, just let me..."

Fergal watched on as Sami easily slipped the mask over his head. The mask covered Sami's entire head and face, aside from the eyes and his mouth. Most people might not immediately realise who was beneath the mask, but the beard would definitely be a giveaway to those who knew Sami well enough. The mask itself was plain black, with some red and white trim around the eye area.

"So, who are you supposed to be?" Fergal asked, not familiar with the mask Sami had put on.

"Oh, well it was Bayley's idea to go as wrestlers," Sami smiled brightly, "But...uh...I couldn't decide on a particular one to go as? So...I just threw on a pair of long tights and a cheap mask..."

Fergal grinned, "...and that makes you...what, a generic luchador?"

"That works, I guess? Whaddaya think?" Sami placed both hands on his hips, power posing to the adoring mass of one person, "Olé!"

"You look..." Fergal frowned slightly, "Snug...those tights are really clinging to your legs there, Sami..."

"Well, they ARE wrestling tights, its right there in the name...tight!" Sami began to do a little twirl, "They aren't that bad, are they?"

"I..." Fergal's words died on his lips as Sami turned around, his mouth suddenly dry at the sight of the tights clinging to Sami's butt for dear life, "Dear lord, that is obscene...I can see the straps of your underwear through the material..."

"Ooh, good call me on not freeballing it then," Sami whistled, craning his neck to try and see for himself and unintentionally wiggling his butt slightly in Fergal's direction, "Not used to jockstraps, but it seemed the most fitting for underneath sportswear."

"Jockstrap...?" Fergal muttered to himself, no wonder Sami's butt looked so prominent in those tights if that's all he had on underneath... "Sami, no, love; you can't go out wearing that."

"No?" Sami turned back around to face Fergal, an exaggerated pout on his face, "Too much for a kids party?"

"Sami, those tights are clingin' to yer arse so much they might as well be spray-painted on," Fergal groaned, the full-body astronaut suit rapidly becoming less and less of a good idea as the heat built up in his body.

"Just think, I could've worn short tights instead," Sami grinned cheekily.

"Fuckin' Hell, Sami are you trying to make me throw all ma self-control out the window?" Fergal tried to think of purer things, but when the purest thing in his life was currently testing his patience it seemed to be a lost cause, "Please, Sami, I'm beggin' ya...either put some damn pants on or else..."

"...or else what, Fergal?" Sami's eyes had narrowed, a challenging look being aimed directly in Fergal's direction, "What you gonna do, eh?"

Fergal growled, "Or else I'm gonna drag you into the bedroom and tear those tights off with my goddamn teeth."

Sami's eyes seemed to catch fire at Fergal's response, the smirk on his face doing nothing to attempt to calm Fergal down, "And does the mask stay on or not?"

"Oh it's coming off alright; I can practically see everything else anyway…" Fergal licked his lips, "Prepare yourself for take-off, Sami Zayn..."

Sami chuckled, despite the smouldering look of pure need being launched in his direction, "I guess we can be a little late to the party."

"Sami, if I have my way it's not just the party you'll be late for," Fergal finally managed to remember how to walk on his own accord, "You're gonna be incredibly late for work tomorrow too."

"Ay, caramba..." Sami murmured as Fergal finally closed the gap between them, all but launching himself at Sami and dragging his partner in for a lust fuelled kiss...

"I can't believe Sami's late, Enzo! He's never late! Especially for a party!"

The young lady pouted as she checked her phone for the umpteenth time.

"Relax Bay, his man probably turned up wearing a sexy demon costume," The entity referred to only as 'Enzo' responded, "Probably be lucky if he leaves the apartment."

"But…we're supposed to be wrestling buddies!" Bayley gestured wildly at her outfit…pink leggings, a black tank top and a leather jacket. A pair of mirrored sunglasses rested on top of her head acting like a makeshift headband, "Bay Hart needs the rest of the Foundation!"

"Hey, it'll be fine…Bret Hart was more of a success solo anyhow," Enzo grinned, "He'll be here soon enough. Plenty of time for him to watch me take the best costume trophy."

"…Enzo, you're wearing the same leopard-print trousers you always wear, how is that a costume?"

"I drew whiskers on my face, didn't I?" Enzo waved his hand in front of his face, "C'mon Bay."

Any reply Bayley had to that retort from Enzo was cut short as her phone suddenly sounded the text message alert, "Ooo…this better be from Sami…"

Bayley blinked in confused as she opened up the text message. It was indeed sent from Sami, but the contents within were a confusing jumble of lower-case letters and punctuation had apparently become a myth somewhere along the way.

"Uh…I think Sami's phone's been hacked…" Bayley frowned, showing Enzo the text message.

"Oh, nah, that's the 'in a damn hurry' lingo. Don't worry, I'm fluent."

"You said that about Italian, y'know?" Bayley scoffed.

"And yet I can find the best pizza place in any town in less than ten minutes," Enzo grinned proudly, re-reading Sami's text message to try and get the gist of it, "Okay…'not gonna make it to the party…something happened to my costume…see you tomorrow…' Yeah, something happened to his costume alright…a devilishly handsome Irish barista, more than likely."

"Oh…drat," Bayley sighed in disappointment, "Now I'm short a tag-team partner…"

"I'm sure one of them kids in there will be dressed up as Juan Cena or something equally ridiculous," Enzo offered, "At worst, you got the dreaded Leopard-Man right here!"

"Well, I suppose I can live with that," Bayley shook her head at Enzo's folly, before slipping her sunglasses down, "C'mon then, partner. Let's get ready to rumble!"