AN: Guess the costumes in the comments. Oh, I'm only going to show trunk or treat because in reality it would be very redundant to show much else. It's Halloween.
Question: Who should propose to who? Ryan to Johnny or Johnny to Ryan?
Part 32
Black and orange streamers hung from the top of the trunk door alongside construction paper bats and pumpkins and strings of candy corn. Inside the trunk were several baskets of candy, mini-cupcakes, pieces of fudge, and cookies.
"Alright, we got our car all ready," Meena declared. She wore a long black dress and a long black wig. Every now and then, she pretended to look down her nose. "Are we ready?" She asked Alphonso and Tyler. She looked out at the church parking lot. There were easily at least 50 vehicles of varying shapes and sizes all decorated in different themes.
Alphonso nodded, smoothing out his black pinstripe suit. "Yep, now we're just waiting for the event to start. I love Trunk or Treat. The church in Redshore has a huge haunted house that spans the whole church."
Meena laughed. "I'd love to see that! Hey, I see Rosita! Hey guys!" She raised her hand. "Awwww!" She cooed at the piglets. They were all painted yellow and wore blue suspenders and goggles in various designs. They ran at her.
"Meena!" They climbed on top of her, Alphonso and Tyler.
Norman was dressed in a gray turtleneck, slacks and a black and gray striped scarf. Rosita wore a turquoise dress with trenchcoat and turquoise sunglasses. Eddie wore a plaid skirt with a green jacket and a black tshirt and white and red sneakers. Even Gunter joined them, wearing a long white doctor's coat and black rubber gloves.
"You all look great!" Meena said. "How are you doing Eddie?" She hugged him.
He smiled. "I'm doing alright. How are you?"
"Oh we are great! We had our first ultrasound and sonogram today!" She squealed excitedly, pulling out the black and white printout.
Rosita hurried over to see. "Awwww! I loved those appointments. Awwww, he or she is already so cute!" They passed the sonogram around.
As the evening began, the rest of their friends arrived. Ash and Lance came with his twins. Raquelle was dressed up in a long, pale blue gown with a braided, blonde wig while Little Lance wore a single piece blue and red suit and a plastic mask where his face would otherwise have been covered. He had a can of silly string in his hand.
"So, Meena, have you told your grandma and grandpa yet?" Ash asked as Lance walked around the parking lot with his kids.
She nodded. "Yeah. We had a big dinner last Sunday night. Grandma cried." She smiled. "You could have knocked Grandpa over with a feather. He's thrilled with being a great-grandfather. Oh, hey Mom, Mr. Calloway! You came!" She ran to her mother for a hug.
Sitara giggled. "Well you sounded so excited that we wanted to come and help." The elephant had taken the opportunity to dress up, opting for a long white dress and a brown wig tied into buns up against the side of her head.
Clay wore a beige tunic and a brown vest with black slacks. A toy gun was strapped to his leg. "I'm afraid I'm not familiar with Trunk or Treat. It was always Trick or Treat when I was a kid."
Alphonso nodded. "Trunk or Treat is just a safer alternative to trick or treat. All the cars are lined up with candy and treats and you can see, it's just a big old party. And kids aren't trying to cross busy streets." The lion nodded, stroking his chin in seriousness.
Sitara looked at all the kids going from car to car. Families played in the hay maze while a wagon went around perimeter giving rides to anyone who wanted one. Everyone was having a good time. "So, you're opening the truck on Monday?"
Tyler, dressed in a fake fur coat, nodded. "Yep. It's finally time to open our winter truck. Ash, is Lance ready for his first real day? I mean helping us develop a menu is one thing. Monday is going to be busy!"
Ash nodded. "I believe it but he's ready. Thanks for giving him the job and letting him keep his pride."
Tyler shook his head. "It was an easy decision. If you can bake or cook, we want you. He even had the idea of offering breakfast sandwiches. We got two others that'll be helping us too." He handed out candy to a child who came to the vehicle. His mouth dropped when he saw Johnny and Ryan headed their way.
Ryan wore a long black coat with a white dress shirt and vest. In his mouth, he held a pair of false fangs. "Do I Dracula? Or do I Dracula?"
Alphonso laughed. "You are definitely Dracula. And let me guess, Van Helsing?"
Johnny held his toy weapon with a grin. "Yep! This is cool. I love Halloween. Hey sis! Love your costumes!" He drew attention to Porsha and Nooshy.
Porsha giggled and modeled her purple dress and her long blonde wig that was braided with flowers. "Thank you, Johnny. You're looking cool too."
Nooshy waved, looking very uncomfortable in her cheerleader costume. "Porsha picked this out when she beat me at poker." She admitted.
Johnny laughed. "Well you look great. Hey, thanks for taking over my training again."
The lynx shook her head. "It's no big deal. Making Clownface look redundant is fun. What did he say when you told him we were going back to Redshore again?"
"He wants to come but Ryan has put out the argument that he needs to stay here and manage the class. The last thing he needs is to go back there," he shivered. "I don't want to go back but I'm going to. Back to that stage."
Nooshy touched his shoulder. "I'll be there, big guy. It won't be easy but we can do it. It might even help." She knew the struggle it was for the gorilla. For all of them. Porsha was in tears every night in anticipation about it. Nooshy had tried to convince her to give up the role if it affected her that badly but she insisted she had to do it. She was wondering if she should tell Big Daddy or Suki but she didn't want to betray her confidence.
—————————
Marcus and Suki had opted out of the event that night. She was exhausted after going back and forth between the two cities in preparation for the restaging of the show.
She lay in his bed, sleeping soundly as he watched over her. She didn't know it but he enjoyed watching her sleep. She had yet to even acknowledge his admission of love but it hadn't seemed to change anything, so at least she wasn't utterly repulsed at the idea. That didn't mean he didn't wonder. Did she feel the same? Or was he fooling himself? She was young and still had the chance to find someone more like her that she could have a family of her own with. Cross-breeding was so rare that he would likely not be able to give that to her. Not that it didn't happen but it was usually regarded as less likely than a lightning strike.
He knew he should discuss it with her but was afraid. What if the conversation accidentally convinced her of what he was most fearful? What if he drove her away? He wasn't ready to be alone again.
Sighing, he climbed into bed and covered them both. She murmured his name in her sleep and he pulled her into his strong arms, holding her close as he fell asleep with her.
