"I'll see you tomorrow at the festival," he said, his hands tucked into the pockets of his hoodie. "I need to finish testing a deployment script I wrote and I think it'll take me most of the day."
I nodded, not saying anything.
"And thanks again for the sashimi. It was delicious." A blush settled on his cheeks, accompanied by a small smile.
"You're welcome," I replied. "It's quite simple to make as long as I have fish."
He shrugged, his smile refusing to dissipate. "I don't think I'd be able to do it. I just really appreciate you making it for me."
I raised an eyebrow, but couldn't commit to holding back my smile. "Making it for you? Now why do you think I made it for you and didn't just happen to make a bunch for myself and give you my leftovers?"
His smile lapsed into startled shock for a moment before he chuckled. "You are wicked," he said with a click of his tongue.
"That's what I aim for," I said with a wink and we bid each other goodnight.
The next morning dawned crisp and grey. Knowing full well that Sebastian would be unavailable during the day, I spent my time farming and fishing until nightfall. Sunset was creeping earlier and earlier every day, and I was surprised to find that darkness had fallen just after 6 o'clock. Pushing back into my house, I tried to rub warmth into my arms. I had worn a jacket over my t-shirt, but it was clear that sweater weather was nearly upon us. Curling up in front of my fireplace, I flipped through one of the comic books Sebastian had lent me.
When 10:00pm finally rolled around, I pulled myself to my feet and headed back out into the cold.
Nodding at Jas and Marnie, I continued past them into the heart of the town square where Pierre had set up shop and I could see a flurry of activity nearby. Hesitant, I stepped forward peering at the townsfolk in the light of the clouded moon, until one in particular caught my eye. Sebastian – I made a beeline for him, waving absent greetings at whoever else I came across.
Dressed in his usual black, he blended in with the darkness surrounding us – like a shadow melting into night. His gaze was captured by a skeleton in the cage before him. My jaw dropped as I realized that the skeleton was moving without any strings or cables pulling its joints. Noticing my presence, the skeleton turned its empty eye sockets on me and I took a hesitant step forward.
Following the skeleton's empty gaze, Sebastian turned and a warm lopsided grin spread across his face. "Hey," he said, and my stomach did a somersault at the huskiness of his voice.
"Happy Spirit's Eve," I said, looping my arm through his. The movement felt more and more natural every time I did it, and I thought I felt a tension slip off him as he pulled me closer.
"Same to you," he said, and a giddiness lurked in his tone. "Did you get a chance to look around?"
I shook my head, my hair catching in a stray breeze and lifting lightly. "Not yet."
"You should. They do a pretty good job with this one. I'll let you explore, then," he said with a curt nod. "I don't want to take any of the magic out of it for you. It's the same every year, but the skeleton is my favourite part. I'll be right here when you're done."
"Okay," I nodded and slipped my arm from his. "I'll be back soon."
Just south of where I stood I could see four tables laden with food and spooky treats. I wasn't hungry and didn't feel like socializing with the folks there, so I wandered north, following the bounds of the hedges that circled the square. As I found myself just outside of town, I stopped, sensing that the hedges were just a little bit taller here. The area was usually so open, but now it was enclosed and I realized why. The townsfolk had built a maze for Spirit's Eve.
"They really went all out," I murmured, pressing my hand to the hedge on my right. I inched forward, noting the eerie glow of light emanating from two gargoyles just outside the hedge. This must be the starting point.
Taking a deep breath, I steeled myself and entered the maze.
I could see cobwebs stretched across branches up above, and deep crimson blood splatters on the ground. I was torn between wanting to find the end of the maze and exploring every path. Not knowing what to expect, I inched forward, keeping my guard up with every movement. By nature, I wasn't an easily frightened person, but a part of me was still wary of how the other townsfolk perceived me. I would not let them have any more opportunities to make fun of me for.
There was something eerie about how alone and isolated the darkness and hedges made me feel, but I could hear someone just up ahead. It was Maru, looking decidedly lost. We exchanged greetings and she eyed me surreptitiously before I took off and continued winding through the maze.
After what felt like 10 minutes, I knew that I was going nowhere in this first pocket of the maze. Having run into Maru and Harvey both multiple times, and occasionally spotting the same jack-o-lantern over and over again, it seemed that there was still much for me to explore, and this was the wrong part to be exploring. Backtracking carefully, I returned to the start of the maze and took a hard right.
I came upon a long straight stretch in which green, ghastly hands protruded from the ground. I crouched down to examine them, but could not discern how they were able to move. Their fingers wriggling and grasping in the cold night air did not seem to follow a pattern and a thread of fear slid through me. Being careful to avoid them, I continued on and caught sight of a dead end where Penny stood staring into a cauldron while a house on chicken legs loomed behind her. I couldn't shake the feeling that I had entered some sort of dream realm that wasn't quite real. The air was thick with magic, and it felt soft and cool on my tongue as I gulped it in.
Taking another turn, I found a TV sitting there, playing static and white noise. Feeling thoroughly unnerved, I scampered past, not daring to wonder how the TV was on while not being plugged into anything. Here, I heard more rustling and suddenly Alex came into view. He was pacing and very agitated.
Not wanting to intrude on his musings, I offered him a kindly smile before slipping by.
Before me, the maze opened up. I recognized the usual fountain that was here in the square north of town, and beside it a figure stood, curled in on itself, caught in the shadow of the fountain. I approached, careful not to make any sudden movements. The figure turned towards me at the sound of my footsteps. I froze and then my brow furrowed.
"Abigail?" I stepped closer. "Are you alright?"
"I can't go on… spiders…" she said softly, and I realized she was even paler than usual. I took in how white her knuckles were as she clenched her hands into tight, bloodless fists. This was terror in its purest form – weak, naked, and powerless. She stared ahead into the darkness.
I narrowed my eyes, and a thought occurred to me, budding at the base of my mind. "They're just spiders. They eat all of the bad things, like mosquitoes," I said with a shrug, struggling to remain calm and collected. "I'll walk with you."
"Are y-you sure?" she squeaked, and a blaze of jealousy flared in my chest at the shy breathiness in her voice. I was too rough to ever sound that cute, and I imagined all of the times she could have used that voice on Sebastian in the past.
"Oh, I'm sure," I said firmly. "Come." I grabbed her hand and felt her ice-cold fist unravel against my fingers.
She trembled beside me as we plunged into the black. With the hedges all around us, the sounds of the fountain died away, leaving behind just the whispers of breath entering and exiting our lungs. I was about to turn a corner when she held back and clasped my hand even tighter.
"D-don't," she stammered. "It's right around the corner. The big spider."
"Maybe it's moved. Maybe someone's moved it."
"No," she shook her head, a stream of moonlight catching in her purple hair. "It's like this every year. And every year I can't do it."
"Okay, well," I extricated myself from her grasp, "let me go ahead and scout it out. We can go by it together or something. Maybe you can close your eyes. Or I can stand in front so I'm blocking your view."
Her hands flew back onto my arm and I could feel their coldness through my sleeve. "Don't go," she pleaded.
"I'll call to you when it's fine to come ahead." I pried her fingers off my arm and continued forward, letting the ghost of a smile flutter past my face.
In the dim light, I saw it, the big spider ahead of me. It looked very not-real, and I felt a sudden pity for Abigail. This arachnophobia must have strong, insidious roots sunk deep within her.
I held my hand out, letting my fingers trail against the hedge, wondering vaguely if the rustling sound unsettled her. As I stepped closer to the big, fake spider, I looked around, squinting and straining to find what I was looking for.
"Ah-ha," I muttered as I crouched down and found one. "Hello, sweetling," I cooed, holding my hand out, palm up.
The spider crawled onto my hand.
It was a small thing, about the size of my thumbnail, and it seemed frightened by my movements as I pushed up out of my crouch, its small legs skittering about on my palm.
For a moment, my head rushed with the possibilities and power at my fingertips. I hesitated, tempted to put the spider back down on the ground, but then Abigail called out. "Are you still there? Are you okay?"
How many other people had seen her like this? How many other people had found it endearing?
"I'm fine," I called back. "I'm coming back for you." I inched my way back to the point where I had left her. I could hear her breathing, ragged and quick, just on the other side of the corner. Cupping my hands together behind my back, spider tucked between them, I said, "Okay, Abigail, it's safe. It's just a fakey fake spider that isn't real and isn't going to hurt you. I'm right around the corner, blocking the way, but if you want to close your eyes, I can guide you past."
There was silence save for her uneven breathing. "Okay," she said finally, and stepped out from around the corner.
Her eyes were squeezed shut and her hands reached out in front of her. I ducked out of the way just long enough to release the spider onto her arm.
Her hands found my elbow and I slowly walked forward, dragging her along behind me. It took almost an entire minute for us to reach the big spider, and by then, the little one on her had made its way into her hair.
"We're almost through," I whispered. "Just a few more steps."
We turned to walk around the thing, and a breeze rustled the hedge. She reached out to steady herself, and I saw the spider scuttle down her outstretched arm. Abigail froze as she processed the sensation sliding down her arm. "Is… is that… oh no."
I had no time to react as she opened her eyes and let out a blood-curdling scream.
"Get it off me, get it off right now!" she yelped, and shook her arm like she wanted to rid herself of it entirely.
"Hold still," I said, and seized her upper arm, just barely keeping it still long enough to grab the spider and toss it into the hedge.
Sobbing loudly, she wrenched her arm free and screamed again as the took in the big, fake spider. Without another glance, she turned and crashed through the hedges, back towards the start.
"Abigail," I called, and followed her through the route she had forged through the foliage. I stumbled out into a crowd of townsfolk: Jas, Marnie, Marlon, Haley, Shane, and Sebastian. They surrounded Abigail as she sobbed into her hands.
"What happened?" Marnie asked.
"It was nothing," I explained, but Abigail glared at me through her tears. "Abigail," I said, addressing her directly, "it was a small one. It was probably more scared of you than you were of it," I reasoned, looking around at the confused faces. "Mine was much less scary than the big one."
"You did this?" she cried. "You put the spider on me?"
"I – no, I didn't realize how much—"
"Oh, really?" she seethed. "I think you did. You knew how scared I was."
"I'm sorry," I murmured , the beginnings of tears prickling at the corners of my eyes. "I didn't realize."
Without another word, she fled, pushing through the crowd back towards town. I thought I heard the front door of Pierre's shop slam shut.
I stood there, not moving, letting the tears cascade down my cheeks. Slowly the crowd dissipated until it was just me and Sebastian standing there at the entrance of the maze.
"What happened?" he asked, voice hard and tired.
"I... I..." I was at a loss for words, the sounds getting caught in my throat.
"What did you do?" There was a sadness in his question. "What were you and Abigail talking about?"
I swallowed down the dryness in my throat. "I scared her. In the maze," I explained.
He gave me a searching look.
"A spider," I added quietly.
He looked away, running his hands through his thick, dark hair. A heavy sigh streamed out of him, and shame wrapped itself over my shoulders.
"Why?" he asked, finally returning his gaze to me. A wan, weary disappointment settled itself on his face.
I fidgeted, my fingers twisting against each other. "I'm sorry, I hope she knows I'm sorry."
He looked at me hard, his expression unreadable and there was a ferocity flickering within him. "Why did you scare her?"
As I took him in, I felt my heart sink. I couldn't avoid answering him. He deserved better than that. The words ripped out of me like a torrent of water shattering a dam. "I was jealous."
He sucked in a breath that he released in a puff. "You're jealous of her," he echoed, examining the words and the truth behind them – raw and gritty and wrathful.
It wasn't a question, but it urged me to respond nonetheless. "I'm jealous of your relationship with her."
"I'm not in a relationship with her," he stated flatly. "I am in a relationship with you."
"Then what about the looks I see you give her? What about that camaraderie you two have? You won't tell me what history you guys have, and so I have to guess and my guess is all jealousy and spite and anger and—"
"Let me tell you, then," he said through gritted teeth, cutting off the trailing end of my thought. I saw the muscles in his jaw pull and strain, but he was able to retain composure as the words poured out of him in a defeated rush. "Once upon a time, yeah, I did have a crush on Abigail." His shoulders sank with his admission, and some of his anger seemed to slip away. "Growing up here, there weren't a lot of other kids, and she was someone who actually talked to me and showed me some kindness. She didn't make fun of me for not having my real dad around, and she was okay with exploring the caves and playing the types of games the other kids didn't want to play."
Another sigh escaped him, but this one seemed to exhaust him more than relieve him. "So yeah," he continued, "we have a history, I can't deny that and with you, I wouldn't want to." His dark gaze cut into me and for a moment the world around us fell away. "But when we reached that teenager phase, she started getting into darker stuff – rituals and habits that I didn't want to be a part of. She's always kind of lived on the edge and embraced it. Me – I wanted to be normal, I wanted to be accepted. I never even told her that I liked her, and I honestly don't think she ever liked me back," he shrugged. "As time went on, we drifted apart. I liked to stay inside and do stuff on my computer, and she was always itching to go outside. There just came a point when I started telling her no whenever she asked me to go out."
He stopped and studied me. Most of my tears had dried now, and my breathing was more even. His expression softened as my breathing hitched and I gulped down a large breath. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. It's just – it's kind of embarrassing now to think about it. I think you know me, and you know my habits and what makes me comfortable. I could never get that with her, and she never did quite understand me." He looked away and I thought he blushed just a slight shade of red. "It's just – I like you, and I need you to know that I do. I can't go back and undo my friendship with Abigail, though, and I swear that all is she is to me is an old friend. I still care about her, but there's nothing romantic about it." His face flushed darker as he reached forward and fumbled as he grasped my hands in his. "You understand me better than she ever did."
I nodded slowly and a relieved smile flashed across his face.
"Sebastian," I began, "I just feel so awful now for scaring her."
"Hey, don't worry about it. We can make this right really easily."
"Really?"
"Yeah," he nodded, and began to walk towards her house where she'd fled, pulling me along behind him. "You know, when she hears why you did it, she's just going to laugh like crazy."
I pressed tight against him as we reached her front door. "Are you sure? Will she forgive me?"
"I'm positive," he said, and gave my hand a squeeze as we knocked and went inside.