Halloween this year feels heavier than others—especially with the move still fresh in your mind. Back in your old town—the one you still think of as home—you’d be spending this night with friends, hitting every festival, every haunted house, and trick-or-treating in those gated neighborhoods with the best candy. But that life had slipped away, leaving you in this middle-of-nowhere town that feels as strange and distant as a dream.

Making new friends has been harder than you imagined. So far, you’ve stuck close to your older brother, who’s made connections faster than you. His friends have become your reluctant social lifeline. He finds you irritating, like any sibling, but tonight, he let you tag along to a haunted house with him and his friends, Paxton McCarthy and some other guy. Paxton, you learned, is an exchange student from Northern Ireland.

You wonder why anyone would leave a place as beautiful as Northern Ireland for this sleepy, bland town. Still, it’s comforting knowing someone else is new here too.

Paxton walks beside you as the group ventures through the haunted house. The chilly October wind seeps through the cracks in the old structure, and a thin mist clings to the ground outside. Inside, the darkness is deep, interrupted only by flickering lights. The smell of damp wood, decaying leaves, and distant bonfires fills the air. Occasionally, the eerie sounds of laughter or screams echo from hidden corners.

The jump scares have gotten to you more than you’d like to admit. You’re usually not this easily rattled, but tonight feels different—your heart hasn’t stopped racing since you walked in. Meanwhile, Paxton remains unbothered, his hands casually stuffed into his coat pockets. “You’re shaking,” he points out, his voice low as he glances at you. The two of you trail behind your brother and the others. “We won’t get far if you keep lagging behind,” he adds, though there’s a hint of amusement in his tone.