It’s Halloween night, 2009, and I’m in the car with my brother Erik heading for a last-minute costume run. He was nice enough to take me along to his yearly frat Halloween party, and I figure it would be a good time to get to know everyone… the idea of being in a fraternity (and being able to attend these wild parties I hear so much about) is definitely an appealing one.
We’re pretty good brothers, though I’m kind of tired of being the “little bro” since I’m only an inch shorter than him. He’s 20, 6’5 and 160 pounds, not too athletic but he’s got SOMETHING on his bones. I’m 17, 6’4, and 135 pounds… meat? Not so much; but I’m working on it.
Erik turns to me with a smirk on his face. "Shawn, this party is a big deal, even to my frat brothers. So try not to be too much of a dork, okay?"
I roll my eyes as he tousles my blonde hair, only a bit longer and a shade lighter than his own. He pulls into the parking lot, a rather abandoned place, a very small building with a homemade sign of 'Costumes' visible, the door wide open.
"Not many choices the day of Halloween, but I heard this place has a ton of choices." Erik says as he gets unbuckled.
“Looks kinda dumpy to me.” I say with my arms crossed. I know there aren’t many options tonight, but still… the place looks like I should have been condemned a long time ago.
“Looks are deceiving, bro.” Erik reassures as he gets out of the car.
“Besides, what sort of costumes do you think we need?" I unbuckle my seatbelt and open the door of the car.
"Not sure, I guess we have to see what they have left." He got out of the car and moved inside, gasping softly, the small building was far larger than it looked, rows upon rows of costumes everywhere, all in neat little plastic bags. "Wow, we sure lucked out Shawny.” He says enthusiastically as he stares, wide-eyed, at the warehouse before him.
"Shawny... ugh." I roll my eyes a bit as I follow him inside only to raise my eyebrows at the sheer size of the place. It’s like a costume Costco. "Whoah… this place is packed! It's like people don't even know it exists…" I turn to my side, expecting to see Erik next to me… only to realize he’s already darted off looking for costumes. I sigh a bit before approaching the beginning of what were many racks to come, and start looking through.
“Animals… no thanks… cartoon characters… no…” I mutter to myself as I look through the various directional signs pointing to the different sections of the store. “Hmm… ERIK!? FIND ANYTHING?!” I yell aloud, my voice bouncing around the walls of the eerily quiet warehouse. It’s like we’re the only ones here… then again, it’s Halloween. People do this stuff in advance.
“Nope.” Erik whispers into my ear… I jump and turn around, Erik naturally laughing his ass off.
“Son of a bitch, Erik!” I yell as I give him a punch on the arm. He knows I’m spooked far too easily.
“Isn’t this place amazing? It’s a fucking emporium…” Erik says excitedly. “I don’t know what I’m gonna get… I could spend hours here.”
“Gentlemen.” A soft voice behind us says.
Our faces turn to confused looks and we turn around to see an elderly man, maybe a little over five feet and in a top hat, tux, and tails, looking at us.
“Find what you’re looking for?” He says kindly.
Erik speaks up, a little confused. “Oh, uh… there are so many choices, we can’t really decide which costume to get. What do you recommend?”
He smiles, a bright smile for someone so old and nods. "We are having a special, being All Hallows Eve, three for the price of one. So pick three costumes you think you might like, and then you can choose whichever one suits you best."
Three for one? That's a fucking steal... especially so late in the game. It certainly opens some possibilities for sure... I mean, who doesn't love options?