Night of the Living Dead

NOTE: This is a HALLOWEEN CONTEST 2018 submission, so ratings and comments are welcome.

NOTE 2: This story ended up taking on a life of its own and is far from what I planned when I started. It may not be to everyone's liking, but it means a lot to me and I hope some others find it enjoyable.

"September sun blowing golden hair... October's rust bisecting black storm clouds."

Part 1: They're Coming To Get You

Since the divorce two years ago, my love life had been nonexistent. I had been married for twenty years, ten of them really good, but once things fell apart, my ex and I were never able to get back on track. The last few years of the marriage were just killing time as we tried to get the money situation straight to go our separate ways.

I was now in my early 40's. I had dated and gotten married at a time before social media, dating apps, and all of the bullshit that seems to surround meeting someone these days even existed, so I had resigned myself to celibacy for the rest of my life. Even though I was often lonely, at least I was happier alone than I had been at the end of the marriage. My relationship with my daughter who had just gone off to college was the best it had been, and my job as a technical writer was going well. At the end of the day, I could come home and take care of some housework, and then relax in front of the tv with a drink or a joint and the dog. It may not have been the life I envisioned for myself at 20 or 30, but it wasn't bad.

Yesterday at work, Anthony came over to my desk.

"How's it going, Tad?" Anthony asked. "Anything new going on?"

"Just the usual," I replied. "Trying to get this manual completed."

"Met anyone new lately?" he asked.

"No," I replied and laughed. "You know that's not been something I've bothered with lately. My hand gets plenty of work. A lot less effort than the craziness out there."

Anthony chuckled. "You're so adventurous."

Anthony continued, "There's this Halloween party tomorrow night a friend of mine is hosting. It's at CJ's, and I want you to come with me and the wife."

"Isn't CJ's a club downtown?" I asked. "I thought it was a place bands played."

"It is. They have a separate area next to the part with the stage that can be rented for private parties and events and such. It'll have a full bar and food and music. It should be a good time. And you need to get out of the house more. The dog's a good boy, but I mean, c'mon...you could use more human interaction away from work."

"Maybe," I hesitated. "It's been a while since I've been to any sort of party."

"It's been a while since you've been around adults apart from work period. Now that your daughter's in college, you've got to do some things for yourself." Anthony continued, "Plus everyone will be in costumes. It'll be a good time. I know you love Halloween, and Saturday night you're going to be holed up at your house handing out candy. Come out with Riley and me Friday and enjoy something about the holiday more adult."

"The idea is appealing," I said. "It has been forever since I've been to a Halloween party, I guess not since college. I could probably put together some sort of costume even though it's tomorrow."

"I know you can do that," Anthony said. "I've seen your place with the dozens of masks you have." My wife and I had collected vinyl and latex horror masks for a period of time, and when we split, I kept the collection.

"You know, I appreciate the invitation," I said. "I'll definitely do it. The worst that happens is it's boring. Watching TV with Satchel doesn't exactly get the heart racing."

"It most definitely does not." Anthony added, "Plus there's going to be someone there I want you to meet."

Having a night out with other adults celebrating my favorite holiday was one thing, but the prospect of being set up was unexpected and wasn't at all appealing.

"Whoa," I said. "I don't know about that. I'm perfectly content as I am. A forty-something divorcee that hasn't dated in over twenty years and who is twenty-five pounds overweight isn't any sort of catch. You know I'd rather not deal with the pressure of meeting someone."

"I know how you are," Anthony said. "But I just said I wanted you to meet someone. I'm not setting you up on a blind date. You'll meet lots of people you don't know at the party, and there's no pressure for anything to happen. I'm just saying that there will be someone at the party that I think you would have a lot in common with and would appreciate meeting. What happens, happens, so just come to the party and have a good time."

I thought about if for a few seconds. "I guess when you put it like that, I can see how it goes. If nothing else, it'll be nice to drink in a new location."

Anthony laughed. "That's the spirit. Riley and I will pick you up at 7 tomorrow night."

Anthony left my desk and I went back to work.

When I arrived home that evening, I looked over my masks and decided a wolfman would be my best costume choice. The mask I had was a 3/4 latex one, so it covered my head but stopped in the back where my neck and skull met. The mask was light, very breathable, and would easily perch on the top of my head when I wanted something to eat or drink or to just expose my face. It was a pretty standard wolfman face, light brown for the face with darker brown molded hair, and had a small opening for the mouth and cut out eyes. It wasn't unlike the old Ben Cooper plastic wolfman mask for kids recreated in latex, just with more natural brown tones replacing the garish yellow and red. Another reason for my costume choice was that the rest of the outfit would be way to assemble. I found a long sleeve flannel shirt, some old jeans, and a pair of black boots in my closet and I was done. Tomorrow morning, I planned to pick up some fake hair, spirit gum, and false nails at the local Spirit to finish the part of my arms and neck that wouldn't be covered, and I thought that would complete a decent costume.

My big decision for the day complete, I packed a bowl, took a couple of hits, and settled down on the couch. From the kitchen, Satchel let loose a pair of barks, and I realized I had forgotten about supper. While my dinner schedule was flexible, the dog's was not, so I headed into the kitchen to find us food.

Just meeting new people had always held an element of stress for me, and knowing that someone was anticipating meeting me tomorrow night had heightened my anxiety about the party. Somewhere in the city, a woman already had expectations about me, and I was apprehensive about how reality would square with the fantasy. From past experience, I found that reality tended to be disappointing.

But that was something I would face tomorrow. The dog fed and my food warming in the microwave, I took another hit and relaxed with Bob's Burgers. Tonight, Tina could worry for the both of us.

Part 2: They're Dead; They're All Messed Up

Around 7 PM, I was on my way to a party with a pair of clowns. Anthony was dressed in a black checkered party suit, the left half red and the right half white. Riley was clearly a "sexy killer clown". Her black and white polka-dot dress was short skirted with bare shoulders and splattered with blood. It was accented with a black bow tie, a tiny black top hat held in her hair with a barrette, and blood stained black and white striped tights. The pair wore matching white face paint with red highlights similar to the Skarsgard Pennywise make-up.

After driving for about twenty minutes, we arrived at CJ's, parked, and joined the party. The room was actually larger than I anticipated and was pretty full. Maybe 200 people, maybe 400 (I'm a pretty terrible judge of crowd size), but there were enough attendees where you could move around without squeezing between people but if you got separated, you weren't going to find your friend quickly.

Everyone was dressed up, and costumes ranged from the lazy (store bought "This is my costume" t-shirt) to the elaborate (comic con cosplay worthy Aquaman with gold and green bodysuit, long blonde wig, and trident). There were plenty of superheroes, zombies, and horror movie characters in attendance and a lot more clowns that I anticipated.

"Looks like our costumes weren't the most original," Anthony said.

"I guess the clowns are due to It?" I remarked. "I know Terrifier didn't reach this many people."

Anthony smiled. "Yeah, I don't see Art the Clown inspiring this turnout."

It had been a long time since I had been to a Halloween party, and it seemed as though women's costumes had changed in that time. I was used to sexy costumes online, in ads, and certainly in the porn I watched, but the internet and advertising are pretty sexual to begin with. I didn't realize that in the real world regular women had ditched traditional costumes for sexy versions. Sexy vampires, sexy schoolgirls, sexy witches, sexy nuns, sexy Jason and Freddy, sexy sluts, even sexy My Little Pony characters, and of course, sexy clowns.

The main part of the room where we entered was full of partygoers talking and drinking; directly behind the people and in front is us was a bar with a line about two people deep waiting for drinks. To the left was an area with a slightly raised floor and more elaborate lighting than the center area; strobes, flashlights and a disco ball shown down on the dance floor. The dance area wasn't that busy now, but as the night wore on, it would fill up. To the right of the bar area was a small set of scattered couches, recliners, and tables with barstools, and the room light dimmed as you proceeded farther into this area. On the edge of this back area near some of the tables was a counter with cookies, little sandwiches, and other finger foods, and a couple of people were behind the counter assisting with serving and food preparation. The free food seemed like a good idea as the liquor was surely going to be flowing tonight. There was a hallway that split off the back wall leading to the restrooms and also a nook with a couple of chairs and an actual payphone, though who knew if it still worked.

The walls of the venue were decorated with giant vintage sideshow posters like you'd see at a carnival. They were the size of subway posters and advertised to "Come see the feral wolfboy!" or "Dare to witness the two-headed freak!" Spread among then were modern movie posters for movies like Halloween, Saw, and Night of the Living Dead. The lighting consisted of fall themed colors: warm oranges, reds, and yellows.

A DJ booth was set up in the back corner of the dance floor and, as I discovered as the night moved on, played music with a Halloween or horror theme all night. Oingo Boingo's "Dead Man's Party" floated through the air as we made our way through the crowd to the bar at the back of the room.

Reaching the counter, we took the place of a guy about 6'5" with a thick beard dressed as Stranger Thing's Eleven in pink dress who headed out into the crowd with his drink and his date, who was barely 5' and sported a Mike costume.

"That was a great couple's costume," Riley said.

"Definitely," I replied.

We ordered, and drinks in hand, made our way back into the crowd, heading towards the opposite side from the dance floor near the sitting area.

The music segued into Marilyn Manson's cover of "This Is Halloween" as I talked with Anthony, Riley, and other partygoers they knew. I found that I was able to sip my drink through the slit in my mask, which was nice since it allowed me to keep on my mask.

"Hey," Anthony said to me, tapping me on the shoulder. "Here comes Heather."

Anthony tipped his head in the direction of a woman walking toward us in a Harley Quinn costume, the original metallic red and black harlequin jumpsuit with diamond details.

"Are you serious?" I said to Anthony. "You wanted to set me up with her? That woman is remarkably out of my league."

"Just talk to her," Anthony said.

I couldn't believe I would ever have any chance with the woman who had almost reached our group. She was in her forties, but she was stunning, curvy and thick with large breasts. In the Harley Quinn costume, it was as if she had been drawn by Terry Dodson, and her skintight bodysuit strained under her voluptuous curves.

Heather's costume was accented with a white jester collar and black boots, but she was missing the comic accurate pommed hat and white make up.

The darkness of the full bodysuit framed her light skinned face and hair, which was two-toned with almost white highlights over a layer of warm blond. She had not recently updated the highlights as the icy platinum turned a duller honey golden at the roots. The style appeared to be a bob that had grown out, now shoulder length, parted in the middle, and straight. Her bangs covered her forehead and almost hid her eyes, which were outlined with dark mascara and colored a striking bright blue. A thin black eye mask surrounded them, and the rest of her visible skin was pale as if perpetually hidden from the sun.

"Hey, guys," Heather said when she arrived at our cluster.

"Hi, Heather," Anthony said. "You look great."

"Thank you. This was actually my second costume choice. The first one didn't work out, but luckily I've had this one for a while from past comic cons," she said.

"This is my friend that I mentioned," Anthony said, gesturing at me. "This is Tad."

"Nice to meet you," I said, lifting my mask so it perched on my head. I figured if this woman wanted to meet me that she should at least know what I look like.

"It's nice to meet you," Heather said. "Anthony's told me a little about you. We have daughters of similar ages."

"Really?" I said. Anthony hadn't told me much about Heather or even that she was a mom. "My daughter just started her freshman year in college, so it's been a new experience being on my own for a couple of months."

"That was me two years ago," Heather said. "Lily is a junior this year."

"It's definitely weird being on my own," I said. "Since her mom and I divorced a couple of years ago, all of my effort has been geared towards getting Lacy through high school and to this point in her life. I still haven't figured out what to do with myself."

"I was definitely lost for a while after my divorce," Heather said, "but that was six years ago, and by the time Lily went to school, my career was beginning to get busier, so the separation wasn't as pronounced as it could have been. Of course, I miss Lily every day, but we have a great relationship and she comes home a lot. Plus, we Skype plenty."

"What kind of work are you in?" I asked.

"I am an account representative for an insurance company. Basically I sell insurance and keep tabs on the accounts for the clients I sell to," Heather explained. "It's not super interesting, but it keeps me busy and allows me to travel a lot. Plus, the pay is really good."

"Yeah, I learned a long time ago that the best career path is to find something you don't mind doing that pays the bills," I said.

Heather chuckled. "Pretty much," she said. "You work with Anthony, right?"

"Yeah," I replied. "I do tech writing. I write procedure and instructional manuals, policies, letters...generally anything someone at the company needs me to write. It's not the most fascinating thing in the world, but I'm pretty good at it and it pays the bills."

Heather seemed interested in what I was saying and looked me in the eyes as I spoke. I took the last gulp of my drink.

"I really like your costume," I said. "It's nice to see an original Harley."

"Thank you!" Heather exclaimed and placed her left hand on my arm. "I hate that modern Harley Quinn from Suicide Squad with the booty shorts or the variation from the current comics. It's just a man's wet dream costume and doesn't fit with the character's origin. Harley isn't some sexbomb; she was a psychiatrist."

Heather looked down at her bodysuit. "I love the harlequin concept Paul Dini created for the character."

"It totally agree," I said. "Plus, it looks great on you. It's definitely hotter than the other version that shows all of the skin. I'm sure it's a big hit for photos at the con."

"It is," Heather said. "Though the groping does get a little old. It's nice to go with a group to help keep horny fanboys and their hands in check."

"When did you get into comics?" I asked. "Or do you read them? I know a lot of people are into the con scene now just due to the tv shows, movies, or just the nerd culture in general."

"I don't read them as much as I used to," Heather said. "But I started when I was young and was a constant reader in the late 80's."

"What was your favorite series?" I asked.

"I have a soft spot for the Giffen/DeMatteis Justice League, especially when Kevin Maguire was on art."

"Really?" I asked, excited with her answer. "I loved that comic. Maguire is one of my favorite artists...such great facial expressions."

"I know," Heather said. "The comic had a great mix of comedy and action. Plus, there were a lot of strong female characters with different personalities that weren't just eye candy."

Heather asked me, "How about you? What's your favorite comic run?"

"As far as superhero comics go, I love the Geoff Kohns/Scott Kolins run on The Flash," I said. "Wally is the best Flash in my opinion, and Johns did a great job establishing the rogues' gallery. And Kolins art was so dynamic yet also simple. Sort of a throwback to classic superhero art, as opposed to the photo-realistic artwork that was so common at the time.

"But as far as just favorite comic run, it had to be Y, the Last Man. I'm not ashamed to admit I actually cried at the last issue."

"Oh my god," Heather said. "Brian Vaughan is so tremendous. I just loved that book."

I looked around. "If I'd known everyone else was doing variations on clowns, I have a Pennywise mask I could have done something with," I said.

"No," Heather said. "Your costume is more unique. This is the year for Pennywises. I like yours."

"Thanks," I responded. "I decided to come to this party on pretty short notice, and the wolfman was easy to put together. I thought it turned out to be a perfectly cromulent costume."

Heather laughed, surprising me. "Did you just casually use a made-up word from The Simpsons?"

I laughed as well. "I guess I did." I explained, "I used to watch "Lisa the Iconoclast" a lot, and I ended up adopting the made up words from that episode. It's been such a part of my vocabulary for so long, I don't even think about using 'embiggen' or 'cromulent' these days or that the words are made up." I added, "Though I guess all words are made up at some point. Shakespeare invented like over a thousand words we use today, so maybe Simpsons seasons 4 through 9 are just our modern Shakespeare."

Heather chuckled and put her hand on my chest. "Oh my god, I love that era of the show. I remember when they released those dvd sets. I watched them over and over," she said. "It was awesome that I could own all of the episodes of a show's entire season instead of watching the episodes recorded on vhs from syndication with random weather warnings and chopped up commercials. I binged those dvds over and over."

"I know what you mean," I replied. "With streaming now, everything you can imagine is available with the push of a button. It was a lot more special twenty years ago when what you wanted was harder to come by."

"So true," Heather said. "Though there are some things harder for me to come by now." She paused. "It was a lot easier to find decent single guys when I was twenty years younger."

Heather put her hand on my left arm, rubbed her thumb over the antecubital crease, and looked directly into my eyes. "You seem pretty decent so far, though."