* * *
As I approached my locker I heard Claire and Nate shout in unison, “Happy birthday!” Scattered students turned toward the commotion, and I hurried forward. They had really gone all out. Balloons in all sizes and colors floated in front of my battered locker door, making it nearly impossible to get my combination right.
“Thanks, you guys,” I said. I pulled them in for a tight hug. I loved my best friends. “You didn’t need to make such a big fuss about it, though.” I indicated all the eyes still looking at us. I tried opening the locker again, and this time the steel door creaked open.
“Oh, yeah, I forgot—Jade doesn’t want anyone noticing she exists!” Claire joked, leaning against her locker. “Watch out—someone may want to talk to you.” She opened her book bag and pulled out a black bag and handed it to me. “Happy birthday, dork.”
“You really didn’t need—Oh, my God, MAC makeup?” I shrieked as I looked inside. “You are awesome. I cannot believe it!”
And I really couldn’t. The bag was seriously packed with eye shadows and eyeliners in every color—powders and mascara enough for the whole cheerleading squad, and brushes for every technique available.
“This is too much, Claire.” I lowered my voice.
“It’s nothing,” she said, waving me off. “This way you can do your whole corpse bride makeup for tonight.”
Tonight. My birthday party. My birthday had been declared October 31, the day Mom found me wandering in the woods behind the house. I must have been about five years old and had no recollection why I was there or where I had come from. It was as if all memories had been wiped from my head. The only thing certain was my name: Jade.
After I had spent most of the night at the Hollow Falls Police Department, they had at last endured enough of Mom’s pleading and let her take me home so I could rest. Days passed, then weeks, but nobody ever came to claim me. No local, county, or statewide search turned up any clue to where I may have come from. Eventually, months went by, with dozens of visits from the Children and Family Services Department, and still no one claimed me. I say it as if I were some kind of lost package, and in a way, I was.
So in commemoration, every year I got to throw a birthday Halloween bash, which meant loads of makeup, crazy costumes, and even crazier decorations. If there was one thing Mom could do, it was to throw a wicked party.
I had spent the past few days looking for the needed decorations. Each new item gave Mom a new idea of what we would do in the house. There were a few tombstones for the front lawn, and some creepy-looking low picket fences to be set up as if marking a cemetery. We got orange pumpkin lights and a fog machine to make the house look eerie. A few fake body parts would be spread throughout the house, mainly around the table and next to the food. A big Grim Reaper, complete with threadbare robe and rusted scythe, would be set up in a corner of the living room. I couldn’t wait to see it all decked out.
“Did you get your costumes already?” I asked Nate and Claire as I shoved my amazing present into the narrow locker.
“Yeah, we got them last night. I had to make a few arrangements, but they’re ready for tonight. Ah!” she squealed. “I’m so excited!”
Avan and I had decided to be the characters of one of our favorite movies, The Nightmare before Christmas. He was Jack; I was Sally.
The rest of the day went by without mishaps. In fact, a lot more people I had anticipated approached me to tell me how excited they were about the party. Everyone knew my Mom’s amazing party skills.
I didn’t want to go home right away after school, I knew Mom would be getting the finishing touches done and I didn’t want to be in the middle of that. I drove around for a little while. The windows down and the cool air making my hair whip all over my face. It was when I came to the corner of Mills Boulevard and Richmond Road that I saw him, the boy from my dreams. He entered a dark alley behind the McDonald’s.
It couldn’t be, he wasn’t real!
I drove by slowly, looking deep into the alley, but he was gone. Only the large garbage bins against the buildings were visible. Why did this keep happening? I sighed and decided to forget all about it. I would go home and start getting ready for tonight. My nerves lessened only a little bit as excitement overcame me.