A Halloween Romance

Here is my submission for the Halloween Story Contest 2022.

Like most of my stories, it is a slow burn full of emotion

I hope you enjoy

For the last week I've had a weird feeling that I am being watched. Yet, whenever I looked around no one was there. Tonight while I was trying to study at the library, the hair on the back of my neck stood up several times.

Suddenly I felt a cold chill wash over me and goosebumps popped up on my arms. Before I could look up I heard a voice beside me.

"Hey, mind if I sit here?"

I was sitting at one of the round study tables groups usually used, but tonight I sat alone. Looking up, there stood a woman who was way too hot to be talking to me. She had shoulder length black curly hair, wearing a low cut black shirt showing off just the right amount of cleavage. Not only was she incredibly sexy, but very pretty as well.

"Um sure."

Instead of sitting across from me, she sat right beside me and opened up a notebook. She looked at it for all of thirty seconds before she turned to me again.

"What are you studying?"

"Organic Chemistry."

"Ouch, yuk. Do you have a test tomorrow?"

"No, Monday, but I am trying to get a head start."

"In that case, can I talk you into having a drink with me?"

I looked at her warily. Now I am not ugly or anything like that, but I do know when a woman is way out of my league, and she definitely was. Usually when a woman like this wants to have a drink with someone like me, she wants something, so I decided not to beat around the bush.

"So, what's the catch?"

"No catch, and before you get any ideas, it's just a drink, nothing more."

"Ok sure, I guess it'll help my image being seen with a beautiful woman at a bar, lead on."

"The Speakeasy across the street, sound ok?"

We walked across the street to the bar, neither one of us saying anything. I did notice along the way that she smelled amazing. We found a quiet table, got a couple beers and sat down across from each other.

She reached across and offered me her hand.

"I guess I should introduce myself, I am Carrie."

I took her hand in mind, noticing how soft it felt.

"Myles, but why do I have the feeling you already knew that."

"Guilty."

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of having a drink with you tonight?"

"I've been asking around about you, and everyone tells me you are a pretty good guy."

"Why would they say that?"

"Probably what you did last weekend for starters."

"And what are they saying I did?"

"That Angela's boyfriend dumped her last week, so she decided to get fucked up at a party. Once she got pretty drunk, the sharks started circling looking for an easy score. But you stepped in and got her out of there. You walked her back to her dorm. When she threw herself at you, you stopped her, tucked her into bed, and made sure the door locked behind you."

"Yeah I guess it went that way. I guess I have a higher sense of morals than some guys."

"I have a friend, who needs a good man in her life. She is an acquaintance of yours, and is in two of your classes now. Melodee Morgan, ring a bell?"

"Yeah, I kinda know her. Seems nice, so do you want to introduce us?"

"No, I can't. She would be pissed as hell at me if she knew I was trying to set her up. She can't know it was me who pushed you together."

"OK, I guess I am intrigued, what is your plan?"

"I am not going to betray her trust in any way, but I can give you some pointers to open the door. Let you know things she likes and doesn't like."

"Like what?"

"She is in your organic chemistry class, and will probably be studying in the library Sunday night for your test Monday. She usually likes to study on the quiet floor so she can concentrate and not be bothered. Her grades are important to her, so she will welcome a study buddy for a while."

"That wont get me very far."

"Here is the door opener, she is an absolute sucker for Reese's Peanut Butter Cups."

"The keys to a woman's heart are peanut butter cups?"

"Yup, I suggest you buy a case of them."

"I guess we will find out Sunday night."

**************************

"Let me guess, organic chemistry?"

Melodee looked up at me in surprise as recognition registered on her face.

"Yeah, are you ready?"

"Getting pretty close, mind if I join you?"

"No, misery loves company."

I sat beside her and studied hard for half an hour or so. Finally I decided to see if Carrie was right. I opened up a package of peanut butter cups, and slid one over to Melodee. I heard her suck in her breath.

"Be still my beating heart."

I looked over at her smiling face.

"What?"

"You sure know how to charm a woman don't you?"

I started laughing, trying unsuccessfully to keep my laughter quiet.

"After all these years, I finally found the key to a woman's heart."

She looked at me very seriously.

"You can't tell anyone! It is a closely guarded woman's secret."

"I don't know, this is the kind of thing that could make a guy famous, or rich, or even rich and famous. What's in it for me if I keep it a secret?"

"Well, usually when a man finds out about our weakness, we're supposed to report it to the high women's council so you can be found and eliminated before exposing us all. However, if you keep it to yourself, and keep feeding me cups, I won't report you."

"You drive a hard bargain, but you have yourself a deal."

After our moment of silliness, we got back to studying. After a bit I was about done.

"I think I have absorbed about as much as I can for tonight. What is your short essay going to be about?"

"What short essay?"

"Spielman always ends his test with a short essay, five hundred words or less."

"What, are you kidding me?"

"No, you didn't know?"

"No, how did you know?"

"I have lots of friends here in school, we all share little details like this about classes we have taken. Here, just do a quick one on alcohol in organic chemistry that we went over last week. Quick and easy and will get you a good grade."

"I really, really owe you."

"Yup, next time you bring the peanut butter cups."

"Deal! Would you want to meet for breakfast in the dining hall to do some last minute studying?"

"Yes, but no?"

"HUH?"

"I would love to have breakfast with you, but I never study the morning of a test. Instead I just relax and have confidence that I am prepared."

"Really, that works?"

"Yeah, instead of getting all worked up and stressed, I go into it relaxed and prepared."

"Ok, how about a relaxing breakfast, and we will discuss our genetics test on Friday."

"That does NOT sound relaxing, but I will see you at eight, that good for you?"

"See you then, good night."

I walked out of the library and started across the quad. I had to admit that Melodee seemed like a pretty cool woman. She was certainly very attractive.

She was what I would call on the short side. She was always wearing loose baggy tops, trying to hide the fact that she was stacked. Her greatest physical attribute to me was her ass, it was perfect. Thankfully she didn't hide it in loose clothes, instead always wearing tight jeans or shorts.

But her looks weren't what I found the most attractive tonight. She was in pre med like me, and was obviously intelligent. She seemed to have a good sense of humor and could actually carry a conversation.

Out of nowhere, Carrie was suddenly walking beside me.

"Well, how did it go?"

"Not bad, she seems pretty cool. Going to meet her for breakfast before the test tomorrow."

"Great, I hope you guys hit it off."

We were almost to the men's dorm, and I wondered where she was heading.

"Where are you on your way to?"

"Just heading home, I don't live on campus."

"Want me to walk you to your car?"

"Nah, I am parked right behind the dorm, plus I have my pepper spray handy."

"Ok, catch you later. "

*************************

The next morning I found Melodee waiting outside the dining hall for me.

"Good morning, all ready to go today?"

"Yes, although it is killing me not doing some last minute cramming, but I am trying your approach."

"Trust me, have a nice relaxing breakfast, go in with a clear mind and you will do great."

"Ok, we will see, when are you going to start studying for our genetics test on Friday?"

"I will start tonight, work on it every night instead of trying to cram it all in on Thursday night."

"Meet you at the same table sometime after eight tonight?"

"Yeah, I will be there, good luck today."

I felt the test was pretty easy considering it is organic chemistry. When I got up to leave, I noticed that Melodee was writing her essay so I decided to wait for her in the hall.

When she came out and saw me she broke into a big smile.

"Is it just me, or did that seem too easy?"

"I thought it was pretty easy too, or maybe it was just because we were prepared and relaxed."

"Ok, you made a believer out of me, I will try it again Friday. Where are you heading now?"

"I have US History. The professor is so boring, but it should be an easy A, and get an elective done."

"Yuk, I don't envy you, see you tonight."

"Bye"

At the end of the history lecture, I looked at my notepad and realized I hadn't written or heard a word the entire class.

My mind had been twirling around Melodee the entire time.

I hadn't had a serious girlfriend in awhile now, and kinda missed having someone to do things with. From what I had seen so far, she seemed like serious girlfriend material.

After dinner, I showered and made myself look more presentable than usual for a night in the library. I was anxious and didn't have anything else to do, so I headed over shortly after seven.

To my surprise, Melodee was already at our table. I was a little cautious approaching her, as she seemed very nervous like something was bothering her.

When she saw me, it all went away and greeted me with a big smile.

"Hey, you're early."

"Yeah, everyone was firing up the video games and being loud, so I decided to bail before I got sucked in."

"Sounds like our floor, everyone was all excited to watch the new episode of The Voice."

"Great minds think alike, should we get to it?"

We studied and chatted for about an hour, until she reached into her backpack and pulled out a package of peanut butter cups.

"Ready for a study break?"

"Absolutely, I can use some fresh air, how about you?"

"Sounds great."

We found a tree to lean against while we enjoyed our snack.

"So Myles, tell me something about yourself that will surprise me."

"Hmmmmmm, I was born on Halloween during a full moon."

"Are you serious?"

"Yup."

"That is so cool, Halloween is my favorite holiday."

"Mine too. Now your turn."

She looked at me, I could tell she was having an internal struggle.

"Ok. But don't tell anyone and promise not to laugh."

"I promise."

"I believe in ghosts."

I looked at her and could see that she was waiting for me to laugh.

"So do I."

"No way."

"Way."

"Have you ever seen one?"

"Not that I know of, but sometimes I get the feeling I am being watched, and no one is around at all."

"I am glad I am not the only one that gets those feelings."

"Well, we can be weird together."

I stood up and offered her my hand to help her up.

"As much as I would live to sit out here all night and tell ghost stories, genetics tests wait for no one, dead or alive."

She laughed and took my hand.

"Ok, let's study."

We studied together every night for the rest of the week, our study breaks started to become more and more frequent and lasted longer and longer. We had breakfast together in the mornings, and started sitting beside each other in the classes we shared.

Thursday night before our test, I walked Melodee to her dorm, something I had started doing Monday and had become another nightly ritual for us. I wasn't pushy and she seemed to appreciate it. We seemed to really be clicking along, she was sending me all the right signals that she was interested.

I decided to do something out of my comfort zone. When we left the library, I reached down and took her hand in mine. She looked over at me with the warmest smile I could imagine and gave my hand a squeeze. I swear my heart stopped for a few seconds.

At her dorm I let her go.

"So, breakfast tomorrow, no more studying, no cramming, right?"

"Well, we aced our last test, so I will use your system until proven wrong."

"Goodnight Melodee, see you at breakfast."

"Goodnight Myles."

I watched her walk into the dorm, partly because I hated watching her go, partly because I loved watching her amazing ass.

As I cut across the quad towards my dorm I felt a cold chill come across me.

"Hey lover boy."

"Carrie, fuck, you scared me where did you come from."

"I was coming across the quad when I saw you staring at Melodee's ass."

"I was not!"

"Yeah, let's pretend you weren't staring at her ass. Seems to be going well between you two."

"Yeah, I really owe you, she seems pretty amazing so far."

"Well, I am going to give her a little push tomorrow night. Take her to happy hour at the Speakeasy tomorrow afternoon."

"Why?"

She slugged my shoulder.

"Because I am playing match fucking maker here. Have I failed you so far?"

"True, ok I will ask her."

"That's better."

I decided to text her when I got back to my room, before she could make other plans.

Myles: Hey still up?

Melodee: Yeah, just relaxing a bit before bed, what's up?

Myles: Well if this test seems easy too, I was wondering if you would celebrate with me at happy hour tomorrow afternoon. Maybe go down to Napoli's after for a pizza?

Melodee: Under one condition

Myles: Name it

Melodee: We get the supreme WITH sauerkraut and pineapple

Myles: To quote your words, "Be still my beating heart."

Melodee: Are you kidding, all my friends think that is gross.

Myles: You need new friends if they think that way!

Melodee: Ha, sounds good, it's a date. Meet me in front of my dorm at four?

Myles: Sounds good, see you at breakfast.

Melodee: Goodnight!

Well there it is, an official date. The more I learned about her, the more I liked her. I hope I am not setting myself up for a letdown.

************************

Once again, our test seemed really easy. This time, Melodee beat me finished and was waiting in the hall for me.

"Since you beat me done, I guess it was pretty easy for you."

"My god, I can't believe how easy it was. Your system of relaxing in the morning is golden."

"Yeah, does that mean we are still on for happy hour?"

"Even if I would have bombed it, we would still be going to happy hour."

"Awe, you are so sweet."

"I try."

"I have to get to history, see you at four."

"Ok, try not to fall asleep in class."

Like every History class all week, I didn't hear a word the professor said. I wasn't too concerned, his tests were straight out of the book and he graded for attendance, so as long as I was in my seat I was fine.

The more I got to know Melodee, the more enchanted I was becoming with her. I am discovering that she is much more than a pretty face with a hot body. Hopefully tonight we could connect even more.

The afternoon drug on at a snail's pace. Why is it that when you want time to fly it actually slows down? By three I had already showered, shaved, and dressed to impress. Finally at three thirty I said fuck it and slowly started walking towards her dorm, I was going to hang out and people watch until she came out at four.

I was happily surprised to see her already sitting on the bench in front of her dorm waiting for me. She saw me coming before I was halfway across the quad, instead of waiting for me, she started walking towards me.

If I spent thirty minutes getting ready, she must have spent the entire afternoon. My god she looked good. Her hair was curled, and she wore just enough light makeup to highlight her pretty face.

It was also the first time I saw her without a baggy shirt. Instead she wore a loose fitting v neck shirt short enough to expose her sexy flat stomach, and my suspicions were correct, she is stacked. She matched her sexy shirt with tight jean shorts and she looked like an absolute knockout.

She looked a little nervous walking up to me, I can tell wearing this kind of outfit was out of her comfort zone.

"My god, I am sorry to stare, but you look incredible."

She blushed, but by the smile on her face I could tell she enjoyed the compliment.

"Thanks, you don't clean up half bad yourself."

"I am thirsty, shall we?"

We started walking towards the Speakeasy, our hands brushed each other a few times in the first few steps, finally she made the bold move we both wanted and took mine in hers.

"So, what is your poison? Are you a beer drinker, or are you into seltzers?"

"Beer for sure, those seltzers are so gross, they taste like flavored sweat."

"Ok, I will grab us a pitcher, what is your favorite? I don't care as long as it's lite?"

"In that case, make it Coors Lite."

Since we were one of the first to arrive, we found a small hightop in the corner where we could sit close to each other and chat. I had just come back with our second pitcher when I heard a voice from behind me.

"Hey Myles."

As soon as I turned around, and before I could react, Angela threw her arms around my neck in a big hug.

"Myles, I just want to thank you again for last weekend, you don't know how much I appreciate it. If I can ever do anything for you, name it!"

She looked at Melodee who was clenching her beer glass so tight I thought it would shatter.

"This one is a keeper, good luck with him."

I am sure I was beet red, and Melodee's mood had definitely soured.

"So, what did you do for her last weekend that she is so thankful for?"

"We were at a party together, and she was really really drunk, I guess her boyfriend dumped her that day. A few of the guys were trying to get in her pants, but I could tell she wasn't interested in them. Instead of taking no for an answer they started to feed her more alcohol. I intervened and walked her back to her room. When she tried getting me in bed, I declined. Instead I tucked her in, left a bottle of water by her nightstand, and locked the door behind me. On the way back to my room I texted one of her friends to check on her. She didn't remember a thing."

"Hmmm, she seems really appreciative. I bet she would like to thank you even better."

"I guess you didn't hear the part where she told you I was a keeper, besides she is not my type."

"Oh, you have a type? Let's hear it."

I turned so I was facing her a little more, put my hand over hers and started caressing it with my thumb. I gave her a teasing smile and leaned towards her a little bit.

"Well, let's see. I like a woman who is really smart, has a good sense of humor, loves Halloween, believes in ghosts, likes peanut butter cups, and orders sauerkraut and pineapple on their pizzas."

Her eyes softened, and I knew I had calmed her down and turned her mood back to romantic.

"Well, I am sure that probably describes half the women on campus, what else do you like?"

"I like a woman that is sexy, but doesn't flaunt her body like a stripper all the time. I like curly brown hair, beautiful brown eyes, and lips that just beg me to kiss them."

I could tell that she liked what she was hearing, our voices were barely above a whisper, and we seemed to be leaning closer and closer.

"Hmmm, so why haven't you kissed them yet?"

"I haven't found the right moment, but it has been on my mind for quite awhile."