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Will's front porch light is off.
Thankfully, the kids in his neighbor have manners and they respect Will's subtle communication through lights.
And, well, he's good at that anyway.
He looks at them through the window, though. Little vampires and goblins and ghosts walking down the street, asking for treats or tricks. He remembers how fun it used to be, him and the boys. The rest of his Party, always in matching costumes from their favorite media from that year, Mike always ahead and Will always following him.
But Halloween hasn't been the same ever since he discovered that monsters were actually real. Since a monster almost killed him. Since he almost became one himself.
Will is twenty four now, in a new house on a new city and he still can’t seem to leave his past behind him. Can’t seem to leave his nightmares under the bed, they follow him wherever he goes to haunt him. Twice the age he was when it all first happened, and he still feels as small as he was, physically and emotionally.
Sometimes he has good dreams instead of the bad ones. Where nothing happened, and he was allowed to be a regular kid. Where he didn’t have to hide from monsters or from people and he thrived to become his best self.
Not what happened, though.
His sister is dead, his brother is happy, his mother doesn’t remember things anymore. He barely talks to his friends, these days. Will remember how big he used to dream, how high he aimed for when he was only twelve. He’s twenty four now, not at all as Wise as he used to be, too coward to end anything — simply settled into his pathetic misery.
So his front porch light is off, and he takes a step back from the window.
No more Halloweens for him.