"So who's who again?" Rosie asked, pushing the bathroom door over as she tried to pull the stiff grey jumpsuit out of her crotch.
"I'm Bubba." Dustin answered, stamping down the hall with a mask tucked into his belt and toy chainsaw in his hands. "Will is Damien, Mike is Freddy. Lucas - Jason."
"Neither of the girls wanted this one?"
"No. Max is Carrie and El's Ripley."
"Ripley!" She whined, bursting out the door and pretending she had a flamethrower. "Get away from her, you bitch!"
"El dibsed."
"Ughhhhh!"
"Come on! You got your second choice."
The suit started riding up again already. She was regretting that choice.

With Mike's sister gone to college, and someone called Steve having plans with someone called Robin, it had fallen to her to chaperone the kids. Not that they were kids, really. Teenagers. Which was only slightly better. Instead of trick-or-treating and bobbing for apples, teenagers meant she had to bring them to some party at some random house. Rosie had intended on dropping them off and bailing, but when Dustin excitedly started to include her in their costume plans, she had to agree to actually attend.
She left her car in a lot round the corner from the house, which was already lit up and bumping with noise. Someone has money she thought as they rolled past. Dustin's friends were already in the front yard, so she let him hop out while she parked.
Kids were running around, costumes fluttering in the wind and bags of candy gripped in their little hands. Parents jogged warily after them, a few also having made the effort to dress up, but most just in their everyday clothes. The rain had stopped, but it was still dull and foggy, the perfect ambiance for Hallowe'en night.
"Rosie?"
She whirled. Eddie had appeared silently behind her. He grinned at her shock. "You scared me!"
"Boo!" Waving his arms spookily, he approached. "It's Hallowe'en. It's my job to scare you."
"Oh so you're my designated ghoul?"
"More like "voluntary"." He chewed his lip. "You out for treats?"
"I-I'm..." She stammered, distracted. "Sorry?"
"Trick-or-treating. With the munchkins."
"Not quite. I'm taking them to a house party."
He looked in the direction she jabbed her thumb. "You have my sympathy."
"What about Eddie?"
"I was drinking with Garret. But he had to go to Sarah's for..."
"For his treat?"
He choked: "Y-yeah. Now I'm haunting the streets."
"So what are you?"
Eddie stuck a leg out. "Can't you tell?"
"Um." It wasn't even a costume, really, just a pair of boots, a scarf around his neck, denim jacket open over his bare chest, and some very tight pants.
"I'm Van Halen!"
Rosie laughed at the joke. "Ooo-kay. I see it. You look good."
Did he catch her glancing at those pants again? Or his exposed abs? There was something in his smile that made her feel warm. "What about you?"
"I don't have my mask on." She pulled it from her pocket and slipped it over her head, waving a plastic knife at him and a Jack-O'-Lantern pail.
He burst out laughing. "And just like that, we have the world's shortest Michael Myers!"
"Stop!"
He howled more as she shoved him. "How are you supposed to murder me if you can't even reach my throat!"
Rosie whacked him in the side with the bucket. It was cheap plastic, not enough to hurt him. "Shut up!"
"I have to say; this is the cutest homocide attempt I've experienced."
She froze. Cutest. Glad of the mask, she lowered her weapons. "What?"
"Nothing."
He edged away, hands in his pockets. Rosie took the mask off to watch him, corners of her mouth twitching upward. He acted so confident and goofy, but he was so easy to disarm. She didn't like the way he was getting further from her. "Want to come? Help me babysit?"
Eddie made a face. "I'm not really a high school house party kind of guy?"
"Please? Keep me company?" She pouted.
He ruffled his hair. "Ehh."
"I don't want to be stuck alone wth all these snotty kids."
"And I would be a coward to make you face that alone." He admitted.
As she led him to the house, he turned, crab walking and moving his mouth like he wanted to speak. Like there was a question on his lips. Then he tripped over his own feet, and walked like a normal person, hands tucked under his arms.

The party was as bad as she imagined; a hive of hormones and dad's cologne. Teenagers making out in every corner, drinking questionable mixes out of red cups, and generally just yelling everywhere. Rosie eyed Eddie as they waded through the cacophony, cackling when he wrinkled his nose. They found Dustin and his friends standing awkwardly around the dining room table. Her nephew tried to hide the beer in his hand as she approached.
"Rosie!" He sneered: "And Eddie."
"Henderson."
She tilted his cup toward her, ignoring his excuses. "How many have you had?"
"Half."
"A fourth." Max corrected, shuddering as she swallowed some of hers.
"Take it easy. All of you. No more than three each."
"Yes, Mom." Mike muttered.
Rosie and El gave him the same look, and he shut his mouth.
"Why don't we get a drink." Eddie suggested. "And leave the dweebs to their mingling?"
"Yeah. Eddie and I will be outside if you need us." Rosie followed him into the kitchen, where her pumpkin proved useful for smuggling beers. They escaped out the back door, where Eddie cracked one open, glugging down half of it as he leaned against the wall.
"It's like a zoo in there."
"Now you see why I needed you."
"I'd like to say I'm glad to be of service," He took another gulp. "but I'm not. I hate it here."
"Here isn't so bad though." They could still hear the ruckus inside, but most of the kids were too preoccupied with indoor acitivies to even wander outside. "There's a pool."
"Rich bastards."
Rosie's own drink hissed when she pulled the tab, she quickly put her lips over it before any foam could spill to the ground. Some ran down her costume, of course. "Damn it."
"You got a lil -" Eddie had untied the scarf from his neck, and bent down to wipe at her mouth. "Here."
With her hands full, she could only stare helplessly up at him. He dabbed her lips gently, tongue sticking out in concentration. That warm feeling was filling her up again. "Um."
Lingering, one hand on her shoulder, the other pressing the cloth against her chin. There was more on her neck - Rosie could feel the stickiness. His little finger ghosted against her pulse. In a flash, he woke up, spinning away from her and scrunching the scarf into his back pocket. "All clean!"

Rosie used her sleeve to dry her neck. There was a swing on the back porch full of soft-looking cushions. She slouched dejectedly over and slumped down, tossing the pumpkin and toy knife aside. Eddie did a lap around the pool, peering at the plastic cover like he expected to find fish. He rattled the door of the toolshed at the very back of the yard, then ducked aside, shaking what she presumed was a spider out of his hair. He eyed her apprehensively as he looped back around, plucking his next can out of the bucket. She was prepared for him to just stand and sip, quietly pleased when he joined her.
Determined to revive the mood, she tried a compliment: "I like your tats."
"Thanks!" Eddie pulled the jacket open to give her a better look. "I keep meaning to get more but, yknow... that needs money."
"Tell me about it."
That intrigued him: "Do you have any?"
Rosie awkwardly measured an eight-inch space on her thigh. "A snake."
"No."
"Yes."
"I don't believe you."
"I'll fucking show you!"
"No no no no no!" He yelped. "Not necessary!"
She laughed it off, rolling her sleeve up instead to reveal a small skull behind her elbow. "This one, too."
"The longer I know you, the more metal you become."
"I've always been metal."
Eddie stuck his tongue out. "I believe that."
"You better."
"And that mommy mobile just -" He kissed his fingers. "Cherry on top!"
"Piss off!"
"How did you end up driving around in that?"
"It was cheap!"
"Shoulda been free."
"Because that banged-up old van is a work of art!"
"She is!"
"It's comfortable!"
He tilted his head adorably. "Comfortable?"
"Yes. I can just pull the curtains across and lay the seats down. Don't even need a mattress."
"You sleep in that thing?"
"Sometimes. When I'm on the road."
"Alone?"
"Yeah."
Eddie reached across her and grabbed the plastic knife. Making a stabbing motion. "Curtains ain't gonna keep the real danger out, Rosie!"
"I know that. Just... there were times when I didn't have anywhere else to go."
"Like?"
"Like when I got fired. In Boston. I couldn't pay rent so I stayed in my car for a few weeks."
"Weeks?" He looked like he was about to have a heart attack.
"It was just a little cold, that's all."
"Oh, so if the demons can't get you, exposure will?"
"It wasn't like that." She said soothingly. "I stayed with a friend after that."
"A friend."
"Uh-huh. Just until I got my results. Then I drove to Indiana."
"This was recent?"
"Over the summer."
His jaw clenched and he crumpled the can against his knee. Then he shook himself and asked: "So why'd you get fired?"
"I slapped a customer."
"Did he deserve it?"
"He tried to grab my ass."
"Good for you, then."
Eddie gave in and looked at her face. There was that darkness in his eyes again. He parted his lips to speak, arm resting on the back of the seat. He hesitated and turned away, that vein standing out in his neck again. Rosie's patience had run out. She was tired of waiting for him to make a move. Tired of him toeing the edges of the gap between them. She needed to do something.
Reaching up, she touched her fingers to his cheek and led his mouth to hers. Eddie didn't resist, and she felt a rush at the sensation of his soft lips against hers. She pressed closer, imagining she felt him kissing her back. Imagining his little hum of pleasure.
He jolted back, gently taking her hands off him. "That's not a good idea."
Rosie's heart shattered. Eddie was still holding her hands, one thumb caressing her knuckle. She ripped her arms away and lumbered off the cushions. "I'm sorry."
"Rosie. I-"
She couldn't breathe. Black dots were swimming up to drown her. "I'm so sorry!"
If he said anything else, she didn't hear it. All she could hear were the waves crashing all around. She charged through the house and out onto the street. Her car seemed miles away.

When Dustin found her, she had been crumpled with her head against the steering wheel for over an hour, defeated. Rosie tried to at least fix her hair, but needn't have bothered. He only sat there, red-faced and grinning.
"How many did you have?"
"Three." He slurred.