Whispers of the Sea

Tillie POV It might be the middle of October, but the sun is still beating down on our little town of Brookhaven, North Carolina as if summer never left. The air is toasty and muggy instead of clean and crisp like the fall air further up north. Mother Nature's seasonal confusion isn't going to stop me though. My boyfriend, Jake, and I always go to our friend Cody's Halloween party together and tonight is party night. I throw my long blonde hair up into a messy bun, add some mascara and eyeliner to my bright blue eyes, and then pull some leggings and a plain black shirt over my curvy, five-foot-nine figure. I pull out my phone as I walk down the driveway, eagerly texting Jake to let him know that I am on my way. Me: I’m on my way to your house. We still have to go get Halloween costumes. Jake: s**t… I forgot about the party. I can’t go, Till. Me: What? Why not? Jake: I’ll tell you when you get here. Love you. Me: Love you too. Twenty minutes later and I’m standing on Jake’s front porch, knocking on the door until someone answers. Only a few moments pass before Jake is standing there, in all of his tall and lanky glory. He stands at a whopping six foot two with the most beautiful brown eyes I have ever seen and the nicest brown hair a man could ask for. He’s not a very built man but he is athletic, giving him a lean muscular build effortlessly. “So why can’t you go to the party? We’ve been planning this for months,” I say to Jake, feeling a little upset. “I’m going with my dad to see my grandparents,” Jake replies casually, like he didn’t just cancel our yearly plans on me. I might be freshly eighteen and he might be nineteen, but we have been going to these Halloween parties together since we were thirteen and fourteen. I don’t like change to begin with, but last minute changes are the worst. “Do you really have to go?” I ask Jake as he packs a weekend's worth of clothes to leave town with his dad. “Yes, Till. You know Dad and Janice just split up. I can’t send him to see my grandparents alone. It’s just for the weekend,” he says gently. Janice was his evil stepmother, and his step-brother, Brock, was just as awful. They mistreated Jake so horribly that he spent most nights at my house. All it took was him coming over one time, sporting a black eye and bloody nose after a fight with Brock, and Dad immediately bought a futon for the den. That’s where Jake had slept more often than not for the last year. “How is he doing with the divorce?” I ask quietly, afraid his dad will hear us talk about it. Rob, Jake’s dad, had demanded Janice and Brock move out, ultimately filing for divorce when he caught them abusing Jake. Jake had never said anything because he didn’t want to ruin his dad’s happiness, and both Janice and Brock acted sickly sweet toward him when Rob was around, eliminating any suspicion from his radar. “He’s been doing pretty well since I started staying here again, but I still catch him crying sometimes,” Jake whispers in response. “Why would he cry over those awful people?” I whisper with disgust. “I don’t think he’s crying over her, but I don’t know. I think he feels guilty, but we don’t talk about it,” his words fading into a mumble as he thinks about the situation. I quickly change the subject to distract him. “What am I supposed to do all weekend without you? We haven’t spent a weekend apart in five years,” I whine, and he laughs. “Go to Cody’s Halloween party with Maggie. I’m sure she’s dying to go, and you would have a lot of fun,” he offers as consolation. “I guess I’ll ask her if she wants to go,” I say as I pull out my phone and text Maggie quickly. It dings before I put my phone back in my pocket, letting me know she has texted back. “What did she say?” he asks knowingly, and I roll my eyes. “I guess I need to figure out what I’m gonna be for Halloween now since I’m going stag,” I say sarcastically, making him laugh again. Jake reaches for me, and I grab his hand in mine. He pulls me to him and engulfs me in a tight hug. “I will be back before you know it, Tillie, and I’ll miss you every second I’m gone,” his words are meant to assure me, but I can’t help the uneasiness I feel. “Jake! Time to hit the road,” his dad, Rob, yells from the living room. “Alright, Dad. I’m coming,” he yells back, looking at me sympathetically. I begrudgingly walk with him out to his dad’s pickup truck, crossing my arms as we reach the passenger door. “We’ll see you later, Miss Tillie. Stay outta trouble while he’s gone,” Rob says teasingly. I give him a small smile as I nod, attempting to be polite. "I'll try, Mr. Armstrong." “I will come see you Sunday night, babe. I love you,” Jake says, kissing my forehead sweetly. “I love you too. Be safe and have fun,” I respond, making him smile brightly. “Send me pictures of your Halloween costume. I wanna hear all about the party,” he says cheerfully. I smile at him, nodding in agreement even though I’m not excited about going anymore. I back up to the sidewalk as he gets in the pick-up, listening to the gravel crunch as they drive away. I watch the truck until it disappears around the corner and pull my phone out. “Wanna pick me up? I need to go get a costume,” I text Maggie. Before I can even begin to put my phone away, the little rectangle starts playing Maggie’s ringtone. “Yes, dear?” I say when I answer the phone. “Where are you? I’m coming to get you,” Maggie says enthusiastically, making me smile. “I’m still at Jake’s. They just left,” I say with sadness evident in my voice. “Girl, stop, he will be back in two days,” she says and I roll my eyes. “I’m going to start walking toward your house. Just pick me up on the side of the road,” I mumble in annoyance, but she just sighs. “Alright, I’ll see you in a few,” she replies. I disconnect the call, slowly walking down the driveway to the main road towards Maggie’s house. It bothers me that Jake and Maggie are being so nonchalant about the situation. I have spent every weekend with Jake since he asked me to be his girlfriend five years ago. Sue me for being sad that I won’t see my boyfriend for two days. Maggie pulls up beside me five minutes later and I climb in the front seat without a word. “Are you just not talking to me now?” she says with sarcasm dripping off every word. “Could you just not right now? Jake just left and I’m sad. I don’t need to hear your rant about how it’s good to have time away from him,” I say clearly agitated, but instantly regret my tone. “It is good for you to have time away from Jake, Tillie. Yeah, he’s a good guy but you are your own person just like he is. You can and should do things without him,” she says gently. “I’m sorry for snapping at you. I am sad and don’t want to hear that right now, but I shouldn’t be taking it out on you,” I say honestly. “You’re forgiven. Let’s go to the new Halloween store and see what we can find. Are we thinking sexy, slutty, cute, or scary this year,” she says all at once without stopping to breathe. “I’m thinking sexy. I don’t want to be too slutty but I also don’t want to be cute. I want a costume that makes Jake hate not being here with me,” I answer with a laugh, making her laugh with me. “Revenge teasing. I’m here for it,” she says, clapping her hands in excitement. Maggie drives to the closest Halloween store while we sing at the top of our lungs to every song on the radio. Nervousness settles into my gut at the thought of getting a costume as she parks in front of the store. Halloween is next weekend, so all the good costumes are probably gone. Sure enough, we walk in and the racks are almost bare. “Well, I guess we will just have to make this work,” her excitement dwindling as she evaluates the lack of selection we have. I walk around the store, checking all the racks for any costume that catches my eye. I flip through several different costumes before landing on a “Sexy Nurse” outfit. I check the size and the bag for all the costume parts before locating Maggie in the store. “Did you find something?” she asks me full of hope and desperation. “Yeah. I’m going to be a sexy nurse,” I hold up the costume to show her my plan and she smiles. “I love it. I think I’m going to go with this Catwoman suit,” she says, holding up the costume for my evaluation. “You would look great in that, Mags. Let’s go pay so we can get back to my house to get ready,” I excitedly say, skipping over to the register. The cashier rings up our costumes and we head back to the car. The ride back to my house is filled with chatter about our hair, makeup, and who will be at the party. I forget that Jake isn’t going to be around for a brief second, but then we pass his house and I’m reminded of his absence. A few minutes go by and we finally pull into my driveway, taking me out of my thoughts. Maggie and I rush up to my bedroom, beginning our meticulous work on our hair and makeup before putting our costumes on. “You look hot,” Maggie says as I step in front of the mirror with the tight nurse outfit on. It hugs every curve and my cleavage gives the illusion that “the girls” are one wrong move from falling out. “Will you help me get this on?” her frustration evident as I turn around to find her struggling to get the Catwoman suit on. “You’re going to be miserable tonight,” I point out as I help her pull it up over her thighs and butt. “Maybe, but who cares? I look amazing,” she exclaims as she looks at herself in the mirror. “Picture time! Take some of me for Jake,” the anticipation of his reaction coursing through me as I pose for Maggie. She hands me my phone, showing me the twenty-five photos she took. I choose the best ones and send them to Jake before snapping some selfies with Mags. She hands me her phone, walking towards the wall and I instinctively know what she wants me to do. I snap twenty to thirty photos for her before showing her. We squeal in excitement before running out of my bedroom. “Hey Sunshine, where ya headed?” my dad asks slowly as he sees our outfits. I can tell by the look on his face that he is not happy with my costume, but he doesn’t speak a word. “Halloween party at Cody’s. I left the address on the fridge for you,” I reply giving my dad the biggest smile I can conjure up right now. He looks back at the fridge to check, nodding when he finds my sticky note. “Alright. Try to be home by one in the morning, please. I hate leaving the door unlocked all night and I worry about you being out so late,” he says gently, going back to the sandwich he was making. I walk across the living room into the kitchen and hug him tight around his neck. I know he worries about something happening to me all the time. I’m all he has. It’s just been me and my dad since my mom cheated on him. She left us when I was eight years old for some tourist she found on the beach, but I couldn’t complain. My dad is my world, and he has done a really great job raising me alone. “I’ll be safe, daddy. I’ll text you when I get there and let you know when I’m coming home or what my plans are. Deal?” I state, trying to bring him some comfort with my words, my head resting gently on his shoulder. “Thanks Till. Go on and have a good time,” he says shooing Maggie and me out of the kitchen to the front door. We hurry to the car in excitement and make the short drive to Wilson Way for the party. We turn down the road, our eyes widening at the scene before us. The street is lined with cars and the field beside Cody’s house has been turned into a parking lot, complete with flaggers directing traffic where to park. I pull out my phone, quickly texting my dad to let him know where I am. Jake still hasn’t answered me but I shoot a quick “I miss you” text before stuffing it into my pocket. “Woah,” Maggie says as we get out of the car, walking through the array of cars to Cody’s house. The yard has been transformed into a spooky masterpiece with creatively carved pumpkins lining all of the trails leading to the front door, their flickering candlelight casting an eerie glow in the shadows of the evening. Huge cobwebs stretch across every tree and bush, decorated with thousands of little plastic spiders. Life-sized animatronics are spaced out among the yard, motion detectors causing witch cackles, werewolf howls, and other terrifying sounds to fill the air. As we approach the front door, ghostly figures sway in the wind, hanging from the porch ceiling while a fog machine covers the area in an eerie mist. Every window is adorned with creepy cutouts of different silhouettes, their shadows spread across the ground from the lights inside.. “Cody really went all out this year, didn’t he?” I whisper to Maggie as I admire the yard and porch. I had been to his parties before and the decorations are always out of this world. “Do you think he decorated inside like that too?” Maggie wonders out loud, looking around at our surroundings. “Let’s find out,” I hint impatiently, nudging her toward the front door. She rings the doorbell, bouncing on her tiptoes in excitement. My phone vibrates in my pocket while we wait and I anxiously pull it out as Maggie rings the doorbell one more time. Jake: Ugh. You’re so sexy. I wish I was there with you. Have fun tonight, babe. I love you. Jake’s words bring a clever smile to my face. I wanted to be just sexy enough that he wished he was with me instead of out of town and I did it. “Mission accomplished,” I say to Maggie, showing her my phone, making her laugh at my feeling of achievement. “Ladies! Welcome to my spooky abode,” Cody answers the door dressed as a vampire. “Hey Cody! Nice costume,” Maggie says. Cody bows as we walk past him into the house. The threshold of the house acts as a portal into a whole new haunted world. Tattered black fabric covers the wall, illuminated by the soft glow of orange and purple string lights. Plastic bats hang from the ceiling at different levels, a fan making them sway back and forth as if they are flying. Webbing is scattered across the black fabric with rubber rats and snakes sitting in the material haphazardly. An eight-foot skeleton stands in the corner of the room, its glowing eyes and outstretched arms giving it a creepy vibe. Each room sports a different type of spooky theme. A haunted graveyard, a witch’s lair, a mad scientist’s laboratory, and a vampire’s crypt all add to the haunted house effect. The stairs leading to the second floor and hallway have been transformed into a giant maze of spiderwebs and giant spiders. Various motion-activated figures are placed around the house, making partygoers scream every so often as they become the unsuspecting victims of the decor. The inside of this house is so expertly and extravagantly decorated that I cannot look any direction without seeing something new. “You really went all out,” Maggie yells over the music to Cody, making him smile proudly. Cody has had a crush on Maggie for years. I’m not really sure if she’s blind or just ignoring it anymore, but he is so obvious about it. “Is Jake coming?” Cody yells in my direction and I shake my head no. “Jake went out of town with his dad for the weekend. She’s mopey,” she loudly explains, making me roll my eyes. “We can’t have that! Let’s go get a drink,” he shouts, leading the way into the kitchen. The smell of alcohol permeates the air and by the looks of everyone here, I’m not surprised. “Here you go,” he says, handing me a large plastic cup of what I assume is spiked punch. I take a sip and taste no alcohol. I look at the cup and at him suspiciously but he says nothing. Cody throws a wink Maggie’s way before walking away to play host with the rest of the guests.