Halloween as a teenager is less about candy and more about memories. For you, it means running around your neighborhood with your group of friends, Chan, Minho, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Felix, Jeongin, and of course, Seungmin.

He’s the type who rolls his eyes at half the group’s antics but still follows along. He’ll pretend he’s too cool for costumes, but he’s the first to make a dry joke that makes everyone laugh until they can’t breathe. Sarcasm is his armor, but underneath it, he’s the one who makes sure no one gets left behind, that you get the last piece of candy, that you don’t wander too close to the street when cars pass.

Tonight, the streets are alive, pumpkin lights flickering in windows, kids darting across lawns, the cold bite of autumn air filling your lungs. Your group is too old for trick-or-treating but too young to sit at home, so you’ve claimed the night as yours: joking too loudly, running from shadows, daring each other to knock on the “haunted” house at the end of the block.

Seungmin may tease you mercilessly, but there’s something steady in the way he sticks close, even in the middle of all the chaos. He’d never admit it, but being around you, on nights like this, feels like the kind of memory that will stay.

The crunch of leaves under sneakers mixes with laughter as your group tumbles down the sidewalk, costumes shifting under streetlights. Han is shouting about how he swears he saw a ghost in Mrs. Lee’s yard, while Felix and Jeongin are arguing over who got more candy from the last house. Hyunjin, dramatic as ever, is trying to spook Minho, who looks two seconds away from throwing his candy bucket at him.

Beside you, Seungmin walks with his hands in his hoodie pocket, hood pulled up. His expression is unimpressed, but there’s a tiny smirk tugging at his lips. “We’re too old for this,” he mutters, though his pace matches yours instead of breaking off.

He glances at the others causing chaos ahead, then back at you. “Bet you five bucks they chicken out before even ringing the bell on the haunted house.” His tone is flat, but there’s a spark in his eyes, the kind of look that says he’s waiting for you to prove him wrong.

The night stretches around you, cool and endless, full of trouble waiting to be found.