WEP - "Thriller"

  The WEP Thriller Challenge

"Thriller" by Michael Jackson

&

The 11th song for your

Halloween Party Playlist

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

One Foggy Halloween

Halloween was a dark and dreary night filled with misting rain and fog that moved like ghostly images around the yellow light of the lampposts. It matched my mood, and I went for a walk despite the weather or the late hour. The world was quiet because all the vamps, witches, and goblins, with bellies full of chocolate, were astral projecting through candy-crush dreams.

As the fog closed in and the shadows moved surreptitiously around me, I relished the feel of solitude and silence. I'd just lost a coveted part in the new GT Dragon series. Smarting from the rejection, I was angry for believing my agent when he used words like star and soon-to-be rich and famous.

Sure, I'd appeared in several videos and commercials, even a slasher film, with a scream that won out over fifteen others. But the truth is I'm just an extra. A girl with good legs, a pretty smile, and an award-winning scream. The problem was that I had no desire to be average.

Visibility was low, but I was too caught up in a blue funk to care. With no destination in mind, I walked around and around, block after block. I wasn't lost, just wandering, trying to figure out how to change the future.

"Excuse me, Miss," a deep voice crashed my pity party. Startled, my hand went to my heart, and my breath caught in my throat. Foolishly, I'd assumed I had the world to myself.

The mist seemed to part, and I spotted an incredibly handsome man under the streetlamp. Deep dark eyes, long dark wavy hair. Black jeans and a leather jacket. The clichéd bad boy.

"Don't tell me, you need directions?" I gave him my best "make my day" attitude.

He moved closer. His eyes were hypnotic, his advance slow and easy, and that smile contagious. "I thought you were lost. You've passed by here twice."

"Not directionally lost, just deep in thought," I said as I tried to recall if I had passed by before.

"I'll buy you a drink if you share your thoughts."

"Sure, why not," I agreed, knowing a crowd was safer.

We crossed the street to the Jumpy Jitters. I knew Jess, the owner. As we walked to the corner booth, I introduced myself.

"I'm Drake. Nice to meet you, Clara," he said, then took my hand in his and kissed the back of my hand. His eyes were mesmerizing, and his touch sent warm tingles through my body. I swallowed air. My whole body flushed.

He chuckled. "I've never seen anyone blush so easily."

I slid into my seat and removed my jacket. "It's too warm in here." Embarrassed and questioning my reaction, I fanned my face. Sure, the guy was handsome, but I've seen plenty of attractive, and no, I've never felt that electric spark with anyone else. It had to be a fluke. Too much static in the air. I changed the subject. "So, what has you hanging out in the fog in a small town like Carlisle on Halloween night?"

Before he could answer, the waitress asked for our order. I ordered a drink I could sip all night, a Black Russian. Mr. Suave ordered a bottle of Jack and a draft. I grinned. "Don't tell me, you're nursing a broken heart?"

"No. The bottle is for my grandmother. She's a spry old lady that likes a nip once in a while. Halloween's her favorite holiday. You should have seen her with the kiddos. They loved her costume and that cackle of hers. Scares them every time."

"That's sweet. You're visiting from where?"

"Chicago. I'm a pilot."

For two hours, we conversed like old friends. When Jess turned the lights up and said, "last call," I felt cheated. Drake was an intriguing man."

Drake offered to walk me home, but I said "no" too quickly. It seemed the safest option. "I'll catch a ride with Jess. He lives near me. It was nice meeting you. I hope we run into one another next time you're in town."

"If it's in my power, we will," he said with a sly smile. "May I kiss you goodnight?"

I blushed again, and he took it as a yes. But damn, that man can kiss. I'd never, ever been kissed so well. An immediate addiction, I wanted more. My heart pounded, and I could barely catch my breath.

Drake wished me sweet dreams, then, too quickly, he was gone. After the last patron left, I asked Jess for a ride home, but he had to do the floors, and I didn't feel like waiting.

Walking out in the night air was a rude awakening. The fog had thickened, but I pulled up my collar and started a quick pace home.

Half an hour later, I realized home was blocks away and in the opposite direction. I was standing on a street where the only visible house still had lit Halloween decorations. The fog gave the scene a macabre look.

"Did you follow me?" Drake's voice broke through the fog of my confusion."

"No, honest. I… oh God, I'm not drunk. I know what street I live on. How did I get here?"

Drake, laughingly, said, "I told you Grandma was a witch?"

"Yes, but…a…real…witch?"

"Is there any other kind?"

I still hadn't spotted him in the fog. "Where are you?"

He put his arms around me from behind and whispered. "Right here, beautiful."

I turned. One look into those alluring eyes, and we were locked in a kiss. The passion was all-consuming, as though we'd been lovers for years. I surrendered completely when he began whisper-soft kisses behind my ear and down my neck. Adrift in the passion of his touch and lost in desires I'd never experienced before, I could have sworn we were floating high above the city.

***

A year later, Drake and I married. He flies jets, I'm still an extra, and Granny's is our favorite Halloween hideout.

999 Words

Tagline: The power of a kiss

Yolanda Renée © 2022

Photo by Ben Rosett on Unsplash

Has a kiss ever curled your toes?

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Photo by Jeremy Bezanger on Unsplash