"Wow, it's cold," Angie said after they stepped into the shadow filled forest. She buttoned her black wool jacket and raised the pink hood of her hoodie that she wore underneath.
Some sunlight poked in through the trees, but not enough to warm the woods. It was dark, and noticeably colder than outside. Stevie zippered up his own brown leather aviator's jacket. It had a warm wool lining, and he flipped up the collar to protect his bare neck. He just had a light t-shirt on underneath.
Stevie and Angie walked side-by-side along the trail. In some places the trail narrowed, and he led the way until it opened up again. Occasionally, Angie would try to make casual conversation, but Stevie wasn't much in the mood for talking. For one thing, he was concentrating on watching the trail and listening for signs of danger.
But that was only part of the reason. He was a little angry at Angie for strong-arming him into coming back to the forest. She knew he didn't want to go, and she had forced him—more or less.
Suddenly there was a crash from beside them on the trail! Dry leaves rustled. Stevie froze, expecting the sound of claws scratching across rock. Then he shot his head around and looked over the edge. A squirrel was darting down the side of the hill with a big acorn in its mouth. It paused, cocked its head, and looked at them briefly before disappearing up a tree and into its drey.
"Oooo, scary!" Angie teased from behind him. She patted him on the back. "For a minute I thought he was gonna leap up and nibble us to death with those horrible, gnashing squirrel teeth!"
"Very funny," Stevie said, trying to hold in a laugh. But it was funny, and his laugh burst out through his nose, dislodging a string of snot, which made Angie start laughing. Soon Stevie forgot about being angry. In fact, the laughter buried much of his fear, and he almost enjoyed walking through the woods with his friend.
"I'm psyched for Halloween," he said. "The costumes you made are awesome. Maybe you should be a costume designer or something."
"Thanks," Angie replied. A dry leaf had drifted down into her collar, and she pulled it free. "After we meet Mr. Stark here tomorrow, we'll have to shoot right back to my house to get ready. Mom said she'd help us put the makeup on, but it'll take a while." Angie's mom was a cosmetologist, so Angie's Halloween makeup always looked professional.
"Sounds cool. Okay, we're almost there. Just around that bend." Stevie pointed to the turn in the trail Victor had come around yesterday. "Are your neighbor's having haunted houses again this year?""
Angie nodded. "Yeah, they're haunted house crazy on my block. It's awesome. I saw the party store deliver a dry ice machine and strobe lights to the Martins’ place across the street yesterday. They go all out."
Laughing together with Angie really lifted Stevie's spirits. Even in the forest, now that the sun poked through the trees, and his friend walked beside him, the events of last night blurred and fell away. It almost seemed silly. Now he was more worried about Victor Plotts than specters lurking in the woods.
Angie said, "This haunted house isn't enough for you?" She gestured up ahead.
"It's different when it isn't real. Being scared is fun when you know you're safe. The house in The Grove—that's a different story."
They came to the same scuffed up area of the trail that Stevie had slid down the day before. Now he could see the motorcycle tracks in the dirt—the small squares left by the knobby wheels.
"House is down below," Stevie said.
Angie nodded, and started to climb down the slope.
"Whoa, hey, whoa!" Stevie yelled. "What are you doing?"
"Going to the house," Angie said, as though this had been the plan all along. She had a slick grin on her face. "Come on. It'll be fun. Besides, ghosts only come out at night, right?"
"You said we'd stay up here. That I'd just point to it."
"And you said I was a big liar!" Angie said. "Turns out you were right! Let's go. It'll be fun. Don't worry, I'll protect you."
Stevie's mood had shifted so dramatically that he was surprised to find himself thinking a little exploration actually did sound fun. Laughter really is the best medicine.
"Fine," he said. "We're not going inside, though."
"Of course!" Angie said. But as she turned and slid down the hill, Stevie wasn't sure if her response was a yes or no.