Halloween Stories

At fifteen, Mikey was a little old for trick-or-treating, but he wasn’t too old to go out on Halloween and raise a little hell with his friends.  No, he didn’t do anything malicious, but he wasn’t above toilet papering a few trees and shrubs, having shaving cream fights with his friends or pulling a few other harmless pranks.  After all, it was fun and Mikey got to have a great time with his buddies.  He had just spent a wonderful and raucous evening enjoying those simple pleasures and was still dizzy from all the fun he’d shared with his pals, when he realized it was time for him to head home.  He thought back to what his father had told him before he left. 

“Don’t forget Michelangelo, it’s a school night and you’re to be home by eleven.”  His dad always called him that when they were alone.  He had given Mikey that nickname because of his artwork.  You see, Mikey was gay and his father knew it and accepted the fact.  He explained to his son that he thought the nickname was fitting, after admiring Mikey’s ability to draw pictures of his male friends.  His dad told him his talent could only be rivaled by Michelangelo’s ability to capture the beauty of another male the way he had.  His father explained that the artist Michelangelo was gay too, so maybe that’s why Mikey and his namesake had that rare and unique talent to capture the true essence of maleness.  Therefore, hearing his father call him that always made Mikey feel warm all over, because he knew his father accepted him for who he was. 

Although Mikey could never explain why he did so, he decided to take a seldom-used path home that evening.  The biggest reason he didn’t use this route often was because he had to climb over a couple of stone walls along the way.  The barrier wasn’t that tall or difficult to navigate, but to use this path to get home, he did have to travel through the small cemetery those walls enclosed.  It was shorter and quicker; however, so tonight that’s the way he went.  Although he was normally a pretty brave guy, he was a little nervous about entering the graveyard tonight, especially considering it was Halloween.  As he jumped over the first of the walls, he almost crapped his pants when he heard someone called out to him.

“Are you Michelangelo?” a small, high-pitched voice asked.  Mikey’s jumped in the air, as his heart leaped into his throat and began beating wildly.  He was totally unprepared for anything like this to happen.  Who would be hanging out in a graveyard on a night like tonight?  Besides, he couldn’t believe what the person had asked.  Why would anyone call him by the nickname only his father used for him?  No one else even knew this small fact.  The hairs on the back of Mikey’s neck and arms began to stand on end.  Something was very strange here. 

Slowly, Mikey turned around.  He had to find out who was there and how this person knew so much about him.  Much to his surprise, he discovered it was another boy.  Mikey couldn’t tell much about him, though.  The kid was masked by the shadows, as he curled up in the corner of the wall, trying to keep warm and fighting to stay awake. 

“Uh, who are you?” Mikey stammered, a little unnerved by the encounter.

“Ah…I’m Gary,” the boy explained, beginning to wonder if it was wise or even safe for him to be doing this.  Sucking up his courage, he continued.  “My mother told me to wait here until Michelangelo came to get me.  Are you Michelangelo?” the smaller boy choked out, showing as much bravado as he could muster. 

Mikey looked perplexed.  He wasn’t sure how he should respond to this boy, but he had the feeling it would probably be best to tell him the truth.  “Yeah, it’s my nickname,” he stated a little nervously, but quickly went on to clarify his statement.  “Only my dad calls me that, though.  How’d your mom know about it?”

“I don’t know,” Gary admitted, “but she made me promise I’d wait here until you came to get me.”  The boy was still scrunched up in the corner of the stone wall, and he was making no effort to move. 

“How did she know I’d even come this way?” Mikey asked, even more confused.  “I hardly ever go through the cemetery to get home and I didn’t even know I was going to do it tonight, until a few minutes ago.”  The boys stared at each other, trying to comprehend what was really happening. 

“I’m not sure,” Gary replied, while avoiding making eye contact with the other boy, “but that’s what she told me.” 

“But why did she tell you to wait for me?” Mikey followed, trying to make sense out of what he was being told. 

“She said you’d take me home with you,” Gary explained, looking a little nervous.  He knew how strange this must sound and couldn’t bring himself to look at Mikey while answering his questions, so he chose to stare at the ground instead. 

“What?” Mikey gasped, unable to believe his ears.  “I’m supposed to take you home with me?  But I don’t even know you and you don’t know me or my dad.  Why would your mom tell you that?”  He was eyeing this stranger thoroughly, while trying to make heads or tails of his story. 

“I don’t know why, but that’s what she said,” Gary reiterated; although he was becoming embarrassed by the fact that he couldn’t tell him more. 

“Well, if that’s what she said, then you’d better follow me,” Mikey told him, although not entirely convinced.  “My dad may know more about this.  Maybe you’re mom said something to him.”  Gary started to relax a little, hearing the other boy’s reasoning and acceptance of what he told him.  “So, uh…what’s your name?”  Mikey asked, as he held out his hand, to help him up. 

“Gary,” he answered, simply, taking Mikey’s outstretched arm and pulling himself off of the ground.  As he stood, the other boy spoke again.

“I’m Mikey or Mike, but we’d better get going,” he told him, while checking the other kid out a little more thoroughly.  He now could tell Gary was probably a little younger than himself and not quite as tall, but he was definitely cute.  At least that’s what Mikey thought, looking at the boy in the soft moonlight.  Gary was a little uncomfortable with the way Mikey was checking him out, but he didn’t argue with his request.  As his new friend turned and headed off, Gary trailed obediently behind him. 

When they reached the house and went inside, Mikey called out to his dad, letting him know that he was back.  As his father walked into the room to speak with him, he noticed his son had someone with him.  “Who’s your friend, Mikey?” he asked. 

“This is Gary,” Mikey responded, looking at his dad, as if he expected him to know that fact already.  “He said his mother told him that I was supposed to bring him home with me.  Didn’t you talk to his mom earlier?”  Mikey and his father both looked at each other, obviously very confused. 

“No, I haven’t spoken to anyone about anything like that,” he father explained, looking the new boy over, to see if he might recognize him.  When he realized he’d never seen this kid before, he decided to see if he might be able to get to the bottom of this.  “Gary, do I know your mother?” 

“She said you did,” the nervous boy answered, looking more uncomfortable by the second, “but she said it was a few years ago.”

“Oh, and when did she supposedly talk to me then?” Mikey’s dad asked, even more puzzled by this revelation. 

“I’m not sure,” Gary explained, “but she did tell me I was to wait for Michelangelo and go home with him.”  Mikey’s father’s mouth dropped open at the use of that nickname.  Only he and his son knew he called Mikey that and he’d only done it for the past year or so, since he discovered his son was gay. 

“Uh, what’s your mother’s name then?” Mikey’s dad finally managed to ask, once he regained his composure. 

“Sarah,” Gary told him, simply, while still avoiding eye contact with the man. 

“Sarah what?” the father pressed.  “What’s her last name?”

“Sarah Kopchak,” Gary informed him.  Upon hearing that name, Mikey’s father seemed to lose his balance and looked as if he might fall over.  He recognized the name at once, but he hadn’t heard it for years.  ‘Could it be?’ the man thought.  ‘It isn’t a common name, so it has to be the same person.’ 

“She used to be my next door neighbor,” he finally told the boys, who were now looking at him oddly, confused by his reaction and the strange expression plastered across his face, “but I haven’t heard from her or anything about her in over a dozen years.  The last I knew, she got mugged in the park one night many years ago.”  He didn’t continue the story, because then he’d have to admit she didn’t get mugged, but was raped that evening.  Suddenly, he found his mind drifting back to that time and he considered how long ago it had been since it had all taken place.  That’s when he began staring at Gary, making the boy feel even more uncomfortable.  Everything began to come together and the truth suddenly dawned on him.  Gary was the result of that rape.  Once he got over that shock, he asked his next question, trying to regain control of the situation.  “What’s she doing now?”

“Nothing.  She died,” Gary announced dryly, almost matter-of-factly, causing the other two to react in shock and disbelief. 

“I’m so sorry to hear that,” Mikey’s father offered, with the deepest respect and sympathy, although both he and his son were growing even more confused with every passing second.  Not knowing what else to do, Mikey settled on trying to empathize with the poor kid.

“My mother died too, when I was little,” Mikey told him, trying to put him more at ease.  He could only imagine how much it was hurting Gary to talk about this and he wanted to make it a little less painful for him.  However, Mikey’s dad was almost oblivious to his son’s effort and proceeded with his own line of questioning.

“Gary, when did she pass away?” he pressed.

“When I was ten,” Gary replied, shocking the duo even more.  “She had cancer.”

“And how old are you now?” Mikey’s father followed, more perplexed than before. 

“Fourteen,” Gary told him.  Both Mikey and his father’s mouth dropped open again.  Nothing was adding up. 

“But you told me your mother said you were to wait for me,” Mikey protested, unable to keep from blurting out. 

“She did,” Gary confirmed, unable to comprehend why Mikey was questioning him about that again. 

“When did she tell you this?” Mikey’s dad asked, trying to understand how any of this was possible. 

“Earlier tonight,” Gary confirmed, although not plausibly.

“But if she’s been dead…” Mikey began, but trailed off. 

“I know, it sounds really weird,” Gary admitted, “but that’s how it happened.  You see, I was coming out of my foster parents’ house when this lady came up to me.  She was dressed like an angel and at first I didn’t realize what she was up to, when she began to talk to me.  She started telling me all this stuff, but when she called me ‘pumpkin,’ I knew it was a message from my mom.  She always called me pumpkin when I was little, so I understood this had to be my mom coming back to save me or someone she sent to do it for her.  It’s funny, but I wasn’t scared or anything.  I guess I probably should have been, seeing my mom’s been dead for so long, but I just wasn’t.  I somehow knew everything was going to be all right.  I talked to the lady for a little while longer and that’s when I began to understand this was really my mom.  She told me everything was going to get better and I wouldn’t have to live in my foster home any more.  She knew I hated it there.  She also told me she understood I was gay and that was okay with her too.  She promised me I’d be happy now and in a place where I’d be loved and accepted, because I was coming to live with you.”  Both Mikey and his father were temporarily speechless, but finally Mikey’s dad found his tongue again. 

“I’m not sure what this is all about,” he began, trying not to upset the boy, “but there’s no way I can take you in to live here legally.  You’re obviously in foster care, so you’re a ward of the state, and I just can’t have you move in with us, without getting in trouble.” 

“NO! It will be all right,” Gary told him, not accepting his response.  “Mom told me it would be and she said to give you this and it would take care of everything.”  Gary grabbed the trick-or-treat bag he had been carrying with him and dug inside, eventually pulling out an envelope.  He handed it over to Mikey’s dad and waited for him to open it and look at what was inside.  The man leafed through all the papers, continually glancing up at Gary and Mikey as he did so. 

“Did you already check these things out and then put them in a new envelope,” he asked Gary, figuring a curious teen would probably have investigated this on his own first. 

“Nope,” Gary answered.  “Mom told me just to give it to you and I didn’t want to mess things up by opening it first.”  He appeared to be telling the truth.  “I can’t stand where I’m living and didn’t want to take the chance of having to stay there because I screwed things up,” he added and Mikey’s dad seemed to accept his explanation.  However, it only helped to make Mikey more curious.

“Why?  What is it, Dad?” Mikey asked, unwilling to be left in the dark any longer.  “What are those papers?”

“Well, there’s a note and all kinds of legal documents giving me guardianship of Gary.”

“Really?” both boys exclaimed, almost in unison. 

“The letter has a recent date on it, but the other papers are all dated fourteen years ago.  They seem to be official,” Mikey’s dad explained.  “They even have the official state seal on them and all of the required signatures.” 

“What does the note say?” Mikey asked, wanting to know everything.  His father hesitated before responding, wondering if he should disclose the contents of the letter to the boys.  After all, it had some pretty sensitive information in it.  After thinking it over, though, he felt both of them deserved to know what it said, seeing it did affect both of them.  

“Well, let me read it to you,” he told them.

“You may not remember me, but I used to live next door to you,” it began.  “You might be able to recall what happened to me in the park a long time ago, but I’ll bet you never knew what I was doing there that night.  Even though you were almost thirty and I was only fifteen back then, I had a big crush on you.  I knew you were married and your wife was expecting a baby, but I thought you were soooo handsome and I was in love with you.  That’s why I was running behind you that night.  I’d been jogging with you for weeks, staying about ten or twenty yards back, pretending we were doing it together.”  Mikey’s dad stopped reading for a few seconds, still unable to believe his eyes.  His face had paled, his breathing was erratic, and he kept swallowing over and over again.  Finally, he went back to reading the note out loud. 

“We had been running for many minutes when this guy jumped out of the bushes and grabbed me.  I tried to scream to you for help, but he’d put a hand over my mouth, preventing me from doing so.  When we crashed to the ground, it knocked the wind out of me and I couldn’t fight back.  He did what he wanted to and then left.  I walked home and told my parents, but I’m not sure they believed me, even though they did call the police.  The man was never caught, but when my folks found out I was pregnant, they sent me away, to stay with some distant relative.  I ended up having Gary all alone.  Our religion wouldn’t allow me to have an abortion, but once I saw him, I just couldn’t give him up.  My family had nothing more to do with me after that.  He’s such a good boy and I know you’ll grow to love him too, just like I know you love your own son.  More importantly, I know the boys will grow to love one another too.  I realize now that both boys are gay and I want them to be together, so they can share the type of love I could never share with you.  Maybe they will only love each other as brothers, but possibly it may develop into something more.  In time, they will be able to decide that for themselves.  Thank you so much for doing this for me.  I know you are all going to be very happy with each other.  With all my love, Sarah Kopchak.”

After getting over his initial shock, Mikey looked at his father, wondering how he was reacting to what was in the note.  He immediately saw the tears streaking down his father’s cheeks and realized the letter had made him cry.  He glanced over at Gary as well and saw that he was crying too.  That’s when Mikey realized he had been shedding more than a few tears himself.  “Are you going to let him live with us then?” Mikey asked his dad, more than a little hopeful.

“If Gary wants to stay,” his father announced, “then I’ll have the papers checked out, to make sure they are in order.”  Gary nodded his head that he would like that and both boys seemed very excited by the news.  “Besides,” his father continued, “who am I to question a mother’s love?  Especially when she went to all this trouble from beyond the grave.” 

THE END.