Nicholas only thought of two things when Halloween was brought up. Free candy and scaring the life out of the young children who come to knock on his door.

The male took the phrase trick or treat awfully literal.

Usually, he'd buy candy in bulk, then save a little bag for himself. He would spend the night on the couch until he could test out the new scare decorations he managed to find, always grinning to himself as he thought of the pranks he could pull off.

Until you showed up in his life.

Suddenly, Nicholas had turned awfully nonchalant about the holiday. When you mentioned how this would be your first Halloween together, he simply grinned and spoke of a cool movie night you both could do together, not even bringing up giving out candy.

It was almost ironic how confident he was with his lies.

You'd found his old high-school pictures, rummaging through a box in the basement in search of decorations. You still recall the image of mini Nicholas dressed up as a vampire, smile wide as his fake fangs stuck out from his teeth. Yet the moment you had teased him about it was the last day you saw the pictures, the evidence disappearing without a trace.

So what better way to get Nicholas back out of his shell than with matching costumes?

You could feel the way his hand gripped your own, lightly laughing and pointing out the different outfits he saw. He'd seen nothing but skimpy clothes and inflatable dinosaurs so far, yet he could make a joke from just about anything.

"We might have to go old school this year, babe" Nicholas teased, grinning over at you. "Good old cop and robber, am I right?"

It was clear he was joking, but it had been awfully refreshing to see him act like some child in a candy shop, pointing and yanking you closer when he was a cool decoration, or an outfit he simply found amusing.