Archive of Our Own

🎃 🎃 🎃

1. meet

As a child, Alex loved Halloween. He loved going to school during the day, where him and his friends would plan their trick or treating routes over their lunch break. After getting home from school, he would rush to eat dinner, then quickly get in his costume. And don’t even think about asking him to wear a sweatshirt underneath.

However, Alex’s most favorite part about Halloween was going to one of his friend’s houses afterwards, where they would all ceremoniously dump their pillowcases of candy on the floor and asses what they got. Then, they would trade each other their various candies like they were currency.

Now, as an overworked twenty-three year old law student living in New York, Alex can’t say that Halloween still has that same magic it did when he was child.

He’s currently standing in front of his bedroom mirror in a Scooby-Doo onesie that is way too small for him and way too hot, wondering where that magic went.

A knock on his door snaps him out of his reminiscing.

“Alex?” His sister, June, calls to him outside his door. “Are you decent?”

If overheating in a Scooby-Doo onesie made for children is considered decent, then sure. “Yeah, come in,” he calls back.

June comes into his room dressed in an oversized green t-shirt and a pair of brown yoga pants. She’s Shaggy, and her girlfriend, Nora, is going as Daphne.

“You almost ready?” June asks, taking in his appearance amusedly. “Pez cannot wait to meet you. He’s gonna be even more excited when he sees your costume.”

Pez is one of June and Nora’s best friends, and every year, he throws this extravagant Halloween party. Alex has heard stories about him, but has never gotten the chance to meet him. June and Nora met Pez late last year, so this is the first time they are able to go to one of his Halloween parties.

“I’m cooking in this thing,” Alex huffs in frustration. “Why couldn’t I be a slutty Scooby?”

“How would that even work,” June deadpans.

“Or why couldn’t I be Shaggy? Or Fred?”

“Because it’s not as funny,” a new voice says.

Nora, who somehow teleported into the doorway of Alex’s room, is dressed in Daphne’s purple dress and pink tights, with the green scarfed tied carefully around her neck. In her hand, she’s holding an orange wig.

“Babe, can you help me put my wig on?” She asks, then turns to Alex. “Well you look fucking stupid.”

Alex groans loudly then flops onto his bed. “That’s it. I’m not going.”

“Yes you are,” Nora says, marching over to Alex’s bed. She throws the wig into his face and continues. “Pez has a lot of hot friends, and June and I have an ongoing bet to see if you could land anyone in this ridiculous costume.”

“You weren’t supposed to tell him that!” June hisses.

Alex throws the wig off of his face then sits up abruptly. “Wait, what the fuck?”

June sighs, looking a little guilty. “We’re gonna be late if you keep moping.”

***

So that’s how Alex finds himself in Pez’s apartment, wedged in between sweaty bodies clad in all kinds of costumes dancing to bad guy by Billie Eilish. Once they walk in, June and Nora bolt off together to find Pez, somehow forgetting the third part of their costume is with them. Alex sighs. He’ll catch up with them later so they can finally introduce him to Pez.

The first place Alex makes his way over to is the bar, which is just a table in the small kitchen adorned with various liquors and mixers. He gets stopped by a few people he knows in his classes, telling him how funny his costume looks. He also looks like a fucking idiot without June and Nora by his side.

He concocts the strongest drink he can manage, and once his drink is made, Alex unzips the onesie to his waist, letting the arms dangle by his sides and showing off the white tank top he’s wearing underneath. 

He stands around by the bar, taking in the people around him. Three girls dressed as the Powerpuff Girls are sitting on the couch, animatedly talking to a guy in a banana costume.  There’s a couple dressed as Spongebob and Patrick out on the dance floor who have somehow found a way to grind to the Monster Mash. There is also a Mario and Luigi making out in a corner.

Maybe Halloween still does have that make kind of magic, Alex thinks.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees someone approaching the bar. When Alex looks over and they lock eyes, Alex feels like the wind has been knocked out of him.

Because coming towards him is the most beautiful man with the bluest eyes and sharpest cheekbones Alex has ever seen in his sad life. A pair of black sunglasses are perched on his head, atop his sandy blonde hair. He’s dressed in a form-fitting black suit that hugs his broad shoulders in all the right places. A plastic toy gun is dangling from his left hand. He looks like a goddamn James Bond offspring. 

The man sidles up to him, and Alex is about to start begging the man to get brown contacts, but then he starts talking.

“Hello,” the man says politely, plucking a cup from the table. And, holy fucking shit, Alex thinks, he’s British.

“Listen, man,” Alex begins. “If you’re about to ask me for something shaken, not stirred, I’m gonna give you a fucking wedgie.”

The man’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. He looks adorable. Alex bites on his tongue to keep from doing something embarrassing, like squealing.

“Pardon?” The man asks.

And okay, yeah. Maybe threatening to give this James Bond wannabe a wedgie was a little rude. Alex gestures to the man’s suit with the hand holding his cup. “Your costume,” he says flatly. Then, in a terrible James Bond impression, “The name’s Bond, James Bond. You know.”

The man looks down at his costume, as if he’s forgotten what he’s wearing, then looks up at Alex as realization passes over his face.

“Oh, no. I’m not James Bond. Me and my mate, Pez, are the Men in Black.” He gestures across the room, where a man with dark skin and fuchsia hair is dressed in the exact same suit as the other man. “He even rented a pug for the occasion.”

Alex blinks. “How do you even rent a pug?” The man opens his mouth to begin explaining. “Actually, you know what, I don’t want to know.”

“Right.”

“So, if your name isn’t James Bond, then what is it?” Alex asks. 

“The name’s Henry. Henry Fox,” Henry says, smiling cheekily. Alex rolls his eyes. “And you are, Raggy?” He asks in a ridiculous Scooby-Doo impression that makes Alex want to kick his feet and giggle. He needs to get a grip.

“Alex,” he says.

“Nice to meet you, Alex,” Henry says. His eyes sweep over Alex, no doubt taking in his half-worn costume and the beads of sweat sticking to his chest. “Now tell me, where is the rest of the gang?”

Alex shrugs. “Solving mysteries without me, I guess.”

Henry smiles hopefully. “Need some company?”

And that’s how Alex spends the rest of the Halloween party, by Henry’s side. They gravitate towards one of the empty sofas in Pez’s living room, and they talk all night. They talk about Alex being in law school, how Henry ended up in New York after moving from London, and Henry tells crazy stories about his best mate.

“Speak of the devil,” Henry murmurs into his cup as Pez, June, and Nora walk up to the couch they’re sitting on. Pez doesn’t have the pug anymore, and Alex finds that he, again, doesn’t want to know.

“Hello, Hazza, my darling,” Pez says. His eyes flit over to Alex. “And you must be Alexander.”

Alex puts up the hood of his onesie with the big Scooby-Doo head. “What gave you that idea.”

Pez beams. “You’re going to be delightful. I’m Percy. Or Pez, like the sweets.”

“Nice to meet you,” Alex says. “How come you didn’t dress up as a Pez dispenser for Halloween?”

“Oh, Alex. Sweet, beautiful, daft, Alex.” Nora snorts into her cup. “You act like you’re the first person that’s ever told me that.”

June lightly smacks Pez on the arm. “Be nice,” she hisses, then turns to Alex and Henry. “I see you’ve made a friend. Hi, Henry.”

“Hi, June. Hi, Nora,” Henry says, smiling.

Alex whips his head over to Henry. “What the fuck? You know them?”

“We’ve all hung out together a few times,” he explains.

Alex blinks. “Okay.”

“Someone’s jealous,” Nora sing-songs.  June smacks her on the arm this time.

“Nora,” she warns.

“What?” Nora asks innocently. “Also, does this count for our bet?”

“Oh, it absolutely does,” Pez says.

“No it doesn’t,” June says, crossing her arms.

“Babe, just admit you lost,” Nora laughs while putting a reassuring hand on June’s shoulder.

“What bet?” Henry asks Alex quietly as the other three continue to bicker.

Alex sighs, turning to look at a tipsy Henry, whose eyes are already a little glazed over and unfocused. His red lips are also twisted in a goofy grin. 

Considering Alex thinks he’s already halfway in love with this man, it may count for the bet. He’s not giving Nora that satisfaction though.

Instead, he smiles warmly, puts a hand on Henry’s thigh, and says, “Don’t worry about it, sweetheart.”

🎃 🎃 🎃

2. soup (one year)

Please tell me you’re going to Pez’s Halloween party tomorrow.

I must see what costume you are wearing.

Then I must rip it off immediately.

Hey, hope everything is okay. X

Alex?

Henry texts him as Alex is curled up on his bed in a fetal position with a small trash can on the floor next to his head. He’s pretty sure he has a flu of some kind, but he’s also pretty sure he’s dying. All he knows is he woke up feeling like shit this morning, and even though he slept all day, he still feels like shit.

Of course he has to get sick on Halloween. He was going to wear a Freddie Mercury costume to Pez’s party tonight that he knew would drive Henry crazy.

A lot has changed with their relationship since Pez’s last Halloween party. They spent a few months getting to know each other and quickly became friends, but both decided they weren’t ready for anything long-term.

Instead, they’ve started hooking up regularly as a way to relieve stress with the new school semester. Alex had just started an intense internship at a new law firm, and Henry had just started his new job as a teaching assistant at NYU.

Alex knows how it looks, okay. Exclusively sleeping with someone and going out to eat together and spending all their time together makes it sound like they’re in a committed relationship. But it’s just not what that is.

They also haven’t talked about what they are, either. Alex doesn’t even know if Henry wants a relationship.

Speaking of Henry, he should probably text him back to let him know he’s kind of okay. He opens up his messages and types out his response. 

sorry, not gonna make it tonight. have a fever i can’t break. pretty sure it's the flu

tell pez i said hello and take lots of pics sweetheart xoxoxo

He puts his phone back on the nightstand, then attempts to get out of bed. It’s six pm, he still hasn’t had a shower, and he hasn’t been able to keep any food down all day. June and Nora are over Pez’s house getting ready for his party, so no one has been over to yell him for how much he stinks.

Alex sadly drags himself and his trash can over to the bathroom to take a hot shower, hoping the steam will help clear his sinuses.

Once he gets out and dries off, he throws on gray joggers and a Texas Longhorns crewneck, then makes his way over to the kitchen to find something to eat.

He needs to go grocery shopping, something he was planning to do today but hasn’t gotten to because of his sick state. He decides to pull out two pieces of stale white bread to make toast with butter. It’s all he thinks his weak stomach can handle right now, as much as he’d love to DoorDash Five Guys. 

With his toast and water bottle on the coffee table, Alex gets himself bundled up in blankets on his couch. He mindlessly scrolls through all the cable channels on TV, trying to find something to watch. He decides on The Nightmare Before Christmas, because even though he considers it a Christmas movie, he’s trying to get into the Halloween spirit.

He’s only finished one slice of toast before he gets a knock on his door.

He checks the time on his phone. It’s only seven. June and Nora shouldn’t be back this early. Alex hasn’t even gotten any calls or texts from them. Unless they left early to fool around with Pez…

The thought of that alone makes Alex nearly sick again.

“June, Nora,” he calls from the couch. “I swear to fucking god if you’re trying to bring Pez in here for a hookup, get fucking lost.”

There’s a beat of silence. Then: “It’s Henry.”

Alex’s stomach drops to the fucking floor. Henry. What’s he doing here? He’s probably still looking for a hookup since he wouldn’t see Alex tonight at the party.

Alex throws the blankets off of him and onto the floor as he rushes to the door.

“Henry, I’m so sorry, but I’m not up for it tonight. I mean if you still want to go to Pez’s party I can try—“

Alex is immediately cut off by the sight that greets him when he opens the door.

Henry is standing there in black joggers and knitted navy green sweater with orange pumpkins all over it.

In his hands, he’s holding a thermos of soup with a small loaf of Italian bread balanced delicately on top. Slung over his right arm is a reusable grocery bag that says “read banned books” filled with… are those nasal strips?

And, worst and most adorably of all, Henry has a fucking face mask on.

“Henry,” Alex says, a little breathless, then he realizes he’s been quiet a little too long. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, you said you had a fever, so I brought some stuff to make you feel better.” Henry holds up the thermos. “In here is chicken noodle soup. It’s not homemade, I warmed up a can of Progresso. Sorry.”

Alex can’t see his face, but he can just tell Henry is blushing under that face mask.

“What’s in the bag?” Alex asks.

Henry looks down at his feet abashedly, and yeah, he’s definitely blushing. “I didn’t know what exactly your symptoms were, so I brought all sorts of things. Tissues, nasal strips, cough drops, chamomile tea… I even brought a humidifier in case you were congested.”

A humidifier. Alex is so touched by Henry’s thoughtfulness he could cry. But all he can think about is…

“Thank you, Henry, truly,” he begins. “But, you should be at Pez’s party.”

Henry blinks, taken aback. “Alex, darling, no. That’s not where I want to be right now. I want to be here to make you feel better, if that’s okay.”

Oh. 

“Oh. Of course,” he says, awkwardly gesturing a hand into his apartment. “Come in. And please, for the love of god, take off that face mask. I wanna see your face, you dork.”

Henry rolls his eyes fondly, but obliges. “Fine. But if you get me sick, I will never forgive you.”

“Yes you will, baby.” Immediately after letting the term of endearment slip, Alex freezes.

The thing is, he’s definitely called Henry ‘baby’ before. However, this is the first time he’s actually said it to him, rather than shouted it at him in the midst of an intense orgasm.

Henry, like the polite man he is, doesn’t seem to sense Alex’s inner turmoil. While toeing off his Converse by the front door, he turns to Alex and simply says, “You’re right. I probably will.”

Alex takes the tote bag off of Henry’s arm and sets it on the coffee table, where he starts unpacking its contents. He immediately opens up the cold and flu medicine Henry brought over, as Henry begins to make himself comfortable in the kitchen.

“Would you like me to heat up the soup, now?” Henry asks, already grabbing mugs and bowls from Alex’s cabinets.

“Sure, thanks,” Alex replies.

They fall into a comfortable silence. Alex is still watching the movie on the Tv, but he still pays close attention to Henry in the kitchen. His kitchen.

Henry has the stove on to warm up the soup and the hot water for tea. While those heat up, he slices up the loaf of Italian bread to have on the side. He’s quietly humming along to Making Christmas.

The thing is, Henry has been to Alex’s apartment before, plenty of times. But, each time it was because sex was the end goal.  Now that Henry’s just here, coexisting with Alex, it should feel awkward, but somehow, it doesn’t.

It feels incredibly fucking domestic. Alex wonders if Henry feels the same way.

“Do you want to eat in here or out there, love?”

Henry’s voice snaps Alex out of his thinking. Which is probably for the best, before Alex spirals.

“Oh uh, I can eat at the table. Sitting up might make me feel better.”

Alex pauses the movie and makes his way over to the kitchen table. There’s two mugs of chamomile tea with honey and two bowls of chicken noodle soup set up at either end of the small table. In the middle is the plate of sliced Italian bread with a butter dish on the side.

The thought of Henry doing all this just to make Alex feel better makes him want to cry.

“Henry,” he says, taking a seat, “you didn’t have to do all this for me. Seriously.”

Henry smiles shyly, taking the seat across from Alex. “I wanted to. Now please eat something.”

So, they eat. They sit across from each other, chatting idly while sipping on their soup and tea.

(“So Henry, what were you gonna dress up as tonight?”

“I was going to go as a storm trooper from Star Wars. What about you?”

“I was going to be Freddie Mercury. You know that white jumpsuit he wears where the cleavage goes all they way down to his waist? That’s what I was gonna wear.”

Henry chokes on his tea. Alex raises an eyebrow.

“Right,” Henry says weakly once he’s recovered. “I think I know the one you’re talking about. Maybe next year, then.”

Alex smiles knowingly into his spoon.)

After they’ve finished eating, Henry is doing the dishes at Alex’s sink, while Alex burrows himself back under his pile of blankets on the couch.

“How are you feeling now?” Henry calls to him. “Any better?”

Alex turns around on the couch to face him in the kitchen, but Henry still has his back turned to him. “A lot better. Thank you so much, Henry.”

“Of course, dear.” Henry pauses for a beat. He turns the water off, then says, “do you want me to go?”

And, oh. Alex checks the time. It’s nine pm. For all the times they’ve slept together, they’ve never actually gone to sleep together. In the same bed. This feels like a weird night of firsts for Alex and Henry.

Henry still has his back facing Alex, as if he’s afraid of seeing Alex’s reaction to that question. That certainly will not do.

“No,” Alex says flatly. “Not really. Do you want to go?”

Henry turns to face Alex now, and he looks almost… hopeful?

“No,” Henry replies, lips curling into a smile. “Not really.”

After finishing the dishes, Henry makes his way over to where Alex is sprawled out on the sofa. He rifles through the tote bag still sitting on the coffee table and pulls out a thermometer.

Alex raises an eyebrow. “Seriously, Hen. What am I, a child?”

Henry rolls his eyes. “I just want to see if you still have a fever. Now, open your mouth.”

“Don’t need to tell me twice,” Alex retorts.

“Alex,” Henry hisses. “You’re ill.”

“And you just told me to open my mouth.”

“You are a plague and I don’t know why I even tolerate you. Now, open.”

It turns out Alex still does have a little bit of a fever. Henry, who insists on getting his temperature down, runs to the bathroom to fetch a cold washcloth. 

When he returns, he crawls under the blanket and collects Alex into his arms. He wraps his left arm around Alex and uses his right hand to slowly drag the cool washcloth over Alex’s face.

It shouldn’t feel as intimate as it does. They’ve been having sex exclusively for the past six months, and nothing has felt as intense as this. What they’re doing feels far more intimate than sex, and Alex is definitely going to spiral about it later. He also doesn’t want Henry to stop.

Alex did not realize how hot he actually was, because he’s not sure if it’s the cool rag that feels amazing on his skin, or if it’s the feel of Henry’s fingertips occasional touching his forehead. Either way, he closes his eyes in delight at the sensation.

“How’s that feel, love?” Henry murmurs softly.

Alex hums in response. He feels more than hears Henry chuckle beside him.

The intimacy and domesticity of it all is something Alex’s sick brain can’t handle right now. So, he doesn’t think. He just burrows himself deeper into Henry’s arms while the voice of the Pumpkin King sends him off to sleep. He thinks he feels Henry's lips against his temple.

🎃 🎃 🎃

3. decisions (two years)

Henry❤️❤️❤️

henry

henry

baby

henry

henry henryyyy

henry henry heneryhernyrhrgyr

Christ, Alex. Is everything okay?

yes perfect

it’s just

i realized something

And what’s that?

it’s our first halloween together

as a REAL couple

which means we need a couples costume

Yes, I suppose we do.

But Alex, it’s only been October 1st for three hours.

and??? spirit halloween opened in july

we gotta start thinking now

At three in the morning?

it’s not like ur doing anything else

you’re probably reading a book you’ve read eight times already

It’s scary how well you know me, you demon.

but yet you love meeee

Somehow, I do.

I’ll start researching.

How about we go as Mario and Luigi?

ew gross

they are literally brothers henry

just because your cousins fuck each other over in england doesn’t mean we have to

I’m gonna ignore that.

How about Leia and Han Solo?

i’ll consider it

but only if you admit empire is better than return of the jedi

Any other ideas?

omg wait

what about mermaidman and barnacle boy

Who?

from spongebob????

I’ve never seen it.

are

you

fucking

We’ve been over this.

What about chips and salsa?

kidding

me

and no to the chips and salsa that’s lame

what about joker and harley quinn???

I'm amenable, but only if you’re Harley.

I want to see you in a shirt that says “Daddy’s Little Monster.”

…

actually nvm

wait this one’s funny. it’s a plug and electrical socket

but i’d have to be the plug. obviously

Considering your sister will also be at Pez’s party, I don’t really feel comfortable wearing that.

oof ur right

Peanut butter and jelly is funny.

not really slutty enough for me

We could go naked underneath.

yes i would but would you?

if we’re matching, we’d both have to be naked baby

Hm. I’ll keep looking.

Sandy and Danny from Grease?

oooooh you would look so good in leather

Thank you. You too.

mike and sully from monsters inc is cute

they have matching onesies

May I remind you of the Scooby-Doo onesie from two years ago?

oh shit yea

the smell of my sweat is still stuck in my nose

Mine, too.

Alex, dear, I love you, but I’m getting tired.

Could we maybe continue this another time?

okay

yea

i’m just not gonna get any sleep tonight

because i’ll be thinking about this all night

but sure

Alex.

yea

anyway i kinda really love the chips and salsa

You do?

i know i said it was lame but that’s kinda the whole point right??

you only have your first halloween as a couple once

I suppose you do.

why not be extremely cheesy

I think the word you’re looking for is: corny.

HA

a bland tortilla chip suits you

What does that even mean?

It’s settled then.

it’s also funny and innocent and let’s everyone know we’re a couple

I’ll order the costumes tomorrow morning on my break at work.

Wow, I didn’t know you were so possessive.

only when it comes to you baby

;)

Jesus Christ.

I really need to get some sleep if I want to teach this lesson tomorrow.

oh so he likes when i’m possessive

that’s something to make a note of

Hate you. I’m going to sleep. xx

you know what they say is good for sleep???

Who is ‘they?’

phone sex

[incoming call from Henry❤️❤️❤️]

🎃 🎃 🎃

4. home (four years)

It’s their first Halloween together in their new brownstone.

They moved in over the summer, Alex having finally moved out of June and Nora’s apartment, and Henry having finally moved out of Pez’s. Henry had some money he inherited from his father, and with the money him and Alex saved, they bought a beautiful brownstone in Brooklyn.

Henry’s new dog, David, is also with them. 

To get the brownstone ready for Halloween, Henry had run out to the nearest Party City to pick out some decorations. They don’t have a front lawn, just a set of steps and a small porch, so the decorations would be a little scarce. That didn’t stop them from being festive.

Thankfully Halloween was on a Saturday this year, a day they were both off, because picking out the decorations and making sure everything was setup took all day.

Alex ran out to the grocery store to get the candy first thing in the morning while Henry went to Party City. Alex may have gone a little overboard, because along with the candy, he also got Capri Suns, snack-sized bags of Goldfish crackers, and mini water bottles.

He’s just getting home and unlocking the front door when Henry comes up the steps behind him. Henry has two tote bags on either arm, and both look filled with decorations. He’s also holding a plastic bowl that looks like a witch’s cauldron, with more decorations stuffed inside.

“Successful shopping trip, baby?” Alex asks, smirking. 

Henry blushes. “Well, I got some fake cobwebs and spiders to cover the railing. Then I found a banner that says Happy Halloween to put above the door. Then I found these cute little skeleton stickers you put on your windows. I also passed the farmers market on the way back, so I picked up some tiny pumpkins and gourds to put on the steps.” Henry frowns. “Do you know where we might be able to get a fog machine?”

Alex blinks.

Henry furrows his eyebrows. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Henry, sweetheart…” Alex says slowly. “I know you want our first Halloween in our brownstone to be perfect, but trust me, I think we have enough.”

“You think so?” Henry asks. “Even without a fog machine?”

Alex nods, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I know so.”

“Okay,” Henry says, looking down at his feet in embarrassment. “I even got us and David matching costumes at Party City.”

Alex loves this man so much he could die.

The matching costumes Henry got for them are two Dalmatian printed t-shirts, Dalmatian ear headbands, and red collars. He got David a cute little Cruella costume.

(“David doesn’t have a mean bone in his body, though,” Alex had said. “How is he Cruella?”

“Right. And do you have Dalmatian in you, darling?”

“You’re the only one I want in me right now.”

“Oh my fucking Christ.”)

They order a pizza and spend the whole day decorating the outside of their home for the trick or treaters. Alex hooks up his phone to a bluetooth speaker and plays a Halloween playlist on Spotify. Once the outside is finished being decorated, they head inside to get themselves and David into their costumes.

Alex has to admit, they look adorable. Henry did a good job of picking out a cute costume on such short notice. To spruce them up, Alex even digs out the black eyeliner he stole from Nora to draw a black spot on both of their noses. By the time they’re all decorated and dressed up, the trick or treaters have started to trickle into their neighborhood.

(David’s costume took the longest to get on, that diva. He had it on long enough for a group photo, then Henry felt bad and took it off of him.)

Alex and Henry take a seat side by side on the steps of their brownstone, the witch’s cauldron candy bowl set on both of their laps. Alex has the water bottles on his side while Henry has the Capri Suns on his. Total Eclipse of the Heart plays softly from the speaker behind them.

“You ready to treat the shit out of these trick or treaters, baby?” Alex asks Henry, nudging his shoulder against his.

“I believe so,” Henry replies, smiling as a family dressed as various Marvel characters walk up.

Alex is honestly a little surprised by the amount of trick or treaters that come to their house. He remembers when he would give out candy with his mom and Leo on Halloween when he lived in Austin. He was in that weird stage where he was too old to go trick or treating, but too young to go out to parties. Some years, they would run out of candy after the first hour of trick or treating. Other years, they would be bringing in a bowl that was still full at the end of the night. It was always a hit or a miss.

Their first Halloween in their Brooklyn brownstone, though, was definitely a hit. Alex didn’t know that handing out candy could be so fun. All the kids were polite and thanked them immensely for the juice boxes, specifically. The Capri Suns were the first things they ran out of. (If Alex had one or two before trick or treating started, Henry did not need to know.)

It was also fun seeing what costumes the kids were wearing, too. There were all the usual costumes (Mario characters, various animals, Ninja Turtles), but there were also some very creative ones. One little boy, who was no older than six, was dressed in a full homemade outfit of a King’s Royal Guard. Alex, who was clutching his side from laughing so hard, immediately pointed him out to Henry. Henry had just rolled his eyes fondly. 

“Alex, dear,” Henry says after the Royal Guard and his family walked away, “can you run inside and grab more candy, please?”

“Sure thing, boss,” Alex says before jogging into the house.

When he comes back out with another bag of candy in his arms, the sight that greets him nearly makes him fall down the steps.

Henry is sitting on the steps politely talking to a group of girls all dressed as different Disney princesses. They all look to be about eight to nine years old. Alex hears one girl dressed as Tiana tell Henry how they are all classmates. Henry listens intently to whatever they're saying to him, as if he’s having a serious conversation with a group of adults rather than a group of children in costumes. He happily gives them their candy, and as they're about to walk away, Henry reaches out and fixes the crooked tiara on a girl dressed as Cinderella.

And that, officially, awakens something in Alex.

Henry turns back around to Alex, smiling. “There you are.” He holds up the empty bowl. “We’re gonna need a refill.”

“We’re gonna need a baby,” Alex blurts.

Henry’s mouth drops open. “What?”

“What.”

“Alex,” Henry says, trying to keep his composure. “What did you just say?”

Alex frantically waves his arms in front of his body, as if doing so will erase the words he just said out of thin air. He’s about to try to backtrack and explain himself, but a family dressed up as Bluey’s family is already making their way over to them. Saved by the Bluey.

Watching Henry interact with the children the rest of the night is absolute torture. Not just because he wants to jump Henry’s bones, but because he wants to see Henry interact with a child that is theirs.

If Alex had a song for this current situation, it would be Juno by Sabrina Carpenter. He’ll keep it PG and continue listening to the Monster Mash for now, though.

They officially run out of candy the same time the trick or treaters start to thin out around nine p.m., so they pack up for the night and head inside.

Once inside, Henry heads to the stove to start making peppermint tea for himself and a decaf coffee for Alex. Alex takes a seat at their kitchen island. Both of them have not said very much to each other since Alex’s comment, and Alex is hoping that Henry somehow forgot what he said or misheard him.

“I think we should talk about it,” Henry says, not looking up from where he’s pouring the hot water over coffee grinds.

Okay, so he didn’t forget.

“About what? Is it about how I was swiping Kit-Kats all night?” Alex asks nervously.

Henry turns around to look at him incredulously. “What? You were doing that?”

“No, baby, never.”

Henry sighs. “No, not about that. You made a comment.”

“I make lots of comments.”

“Alex, please,” Henry says, practically begging. “Can we please just have a normal conversation—“

“I want a family,” Alex blurts. “I want a family. With you, specifically. Not right now, at some point, probably. But, yeah.”

Henry stands there frozen, like he’s unsure what to say. “Alex—“ he starts.

“Sorry, this is stupid. I just saw you with all those kids tonight and it just made me realize how bad I want that with you. Obviously if you don’t that’s fine—“

“Alex—“

“—I’ll love you forever either way, I just think that—“

“Alex,” Henry says to cut him off. “Yes. I want that, too.”

Alex feels his lips pulling into a smile. “Really?”

Henry nods, also smiling. “Yes, of course. Now, can we have a more serious conversation about this another time? Maybe when we’re more financially stable and not wearing Dalmatian costumes?”

Alex walks up to Henry, pinning him against the counter with his hips. “Whenever you wanna talk baby, I’m all ears.”

“With your ears, or the Dalmatian ears?” Henry asks, laughing.

Alex presses against him harder, and suddenly nothing is funny anymore.

🎃 🎃 🎃

5. crafts (ten years)

It all starts when Alex picks up their six year old daughter, Ellie, from school one day. A week before Halloween.

“Papa, we’re having a Halloween parade at school, and all the parents are invited!” she says excitedly from the backseat.

Alex smiles at her enthusiasm. “That sounds fun, baby. Me and daddy will be there. Maybe one of us can take you to Party City to get a costume?”

Ellie stays quiet. “Okay,” she mumbles.

Ales furrows his eyebrows. “Why don’t you seem happy about that?”

"It's just," Alex sees her frown in the rearview mirror. “I wanna be a crayon.”

“That’s okay, mija. I’m sure Party City has crayon costumes,” he says. “They have all kinds of colors.”

“Yeah, they probably have boring colors. I wanna be dandelion.”

“Dandelion is a flower, not a crayon princessa,” Alex says fondly.

“No, papa. You don’t get it. The color is dandelion.”

“Oh,” he says. “So, yellow?”

“No!” Ellie practically shouts, making Alex jump. “It’s not yellow, it’s dandelion!”

“Please don’t shout, Elle Belle.”

“Sorry, papa.”

“It’s okay, baby. Daddy and I will see what we can do, don't you worry,” Alex says, turning around at a red light to flash her a smile.

“Thank you,” she says, smiling back. “Can we get Five Guys for dinner?”

***

Alex replays the conversation he had in the car with Ellie to Henry as they stand in the kitchen together after dinner. Ellie is upstairs, getting her pajamas picked out for after her bath.

When Alex is finished telling the story, Henry’s eyebrows furrow in confusion. “I don’t understand. Does she want to be the flower, or the crayon?”

This is why we’re married, Alex thinks.

“Crayola has a color called dandelion,” Alex explains.

Henry nods. “Why doesn’t she just be a yellow crayon, then?”

“Because it’s not yellow.” Alex is starting to sound like Ellie. “It’s dandelion. And they don’t make dandelion crayon costumes.”

“Then why don’t we make one?”

Alex blinks. “We make her costume?”

Henry shrugs. “Sure, why not? All the best costumes are homemade, anyway.”

Henry has a point, but Alex is a lawyer, not a crafter.

“But we’re not crafty.”

“How hard can it be to make a crayon?”

Turns out, it’s really not that hard at all. Alex comes up with the plan one day when he’s bored at work. He mindlessly flips open to a blank page on his legal pad and starts sketching out his idea for how he’s going to pull this damn thing off.

Once he’s finished his sketch, he proudly takes a picture of it and sends it to Henry, who responds with:

I thought you weren’t crafty, darling?

Also, I love your idea, but when are we going to get any of this done. Halloween is in five days.

Which is how Alex and Henry find themselves staying up until three a.m. every night to make this fucking crayon.

They use a cardboard tube to make the body, cutting out armholes for Ellie. Then, they paint the tube the exact color of the paper on the dandelion crayon, then they do the same thing for the tip of the crayon, which will be a paper cone on her head. (Alex knows they’re the exact colors because he brought a fucking dandelion crayon with him to Joann Fabrics to color match.) He also has Henry make and print out a Crayola label from his work computer to glue onto the thing.

Somehow, they finish assembling the dandelion crayon costume at one a.m. the night before (or morning of?) Halloween. It’s too late to drag Ellie out of bed and have her try it on, so they go to bed hoping and praying to the Halloween Gods that it will fit her in the morning.

***

By some Halloween miracle, it fits. Alex and Henry try getting her to wear a sweatshirt underneath her costume to protect her from the morning chill, but she stubbornly refuses.

Henry is able to compromise with her, and instead she settles for a yellow long sleeve top she had in her wardrobe.

The Halloween parade at her school is basically just one big fashion show for the children to show off their costumes to the teachers and parents. It’s held in the school’s auditorium, with families sitting in the audience taking pictures of their children.

When it’s Ellie’s turn to show off her costume and walk the little runway, Henry and Alex cheer so loud, it makes Alex’s own ears hurt. They are most definitely pissing off the other parents. Henry obnoxiously whistles, which makes Ellie giggle and a mother a few rows ahead groan.

Alex takes an embarrassing amount of pictures to send to June and Nora, only because he worked hard on this costume and he’s proud of it, alright. Henry, sitting beside Alex, also takes an embarrassing amount (if not more) to send to his mother, Pez, and his sister, Bea.

After the parade is over, the kids are given goodie bags with candies, Halloween themed erasers, and spider rings. Then, they are returned to their guardians and free to go home for the day until it’s time for trick or treating.

“Daddy! Papa!” Ellie shouts as she runs up to where Alex and Henry are standing in the back of the auditorium, waiting for her. She very carefully wraps them both in a group hug, as not to smash her costume. “Did you see me?!”

“Yes, little love, we did. You were amazing,” Henry says, bending down to kiss her head of dark, unruly curls.

“I think you had the best costume up there,” Alex says, winking at her.

“Abby loved my costume. She asked me to ask you guys if you would make one for her next year!” Ellie exclaims brightly.

Alex groans, rolling his eyes. Henry laughs softly next to him. “We’ll see about that, darling. Now, how about a nap before trick or treating later?” Henry asks.

Ellie nods eagerly. “Can we get Burger King for lunch first?”

“Only if you make sure not to get any ketchup on your costume,” Alex says.

“I won’t, papa, I promise!”

Spoiler alert: she does. Alex is glad he has leftover paint.

🎃 🎃 🎃

+1 henry (fifteen years)

Coming back to New York feels a little bit like coming home to Henry.

It’s been about five years since he’s been back to New York. Shortly after the birth of their second daughter, Lottie, Alex and Henry both came to the realization that they were getting too old for the hustle and bustle that came with New York.

He will always hold a special place in his heart for New York and what it gave him, but it was time for them to slow down somewhere else.

When deciding on where to live, Alex had happened to get an amazing job offer at his mother’s law firm in Austin, Texas. So, it was like the decision was made for them. Henry quit his job as a teaching assistant at NYU, they enrolled Ellie in a new school, and they quickly packed up their brownstone to move to a quiet little rancher in Austin.

Once they moved, Henry became sort of like a stay-at-home dad/housewife. He had gotten pretty good at packing school lunches, braiding hair, and picking out adorable little outfits for the girls.

Well, the outfit picking was mostly for Lottie. Ellie, who had just turned eight, but was going on eighteen, thought she was capable of picking out her own outfits. But she still needed Alex and Henry to point her in the right direction with her clothes, especially when she tried matching her cheetah print leggings with a green and pink striped sweater. 

Alex goes to work, Ellie gets dropped off at school, and Lottie goes down for her nap. Which leaves Henry to take care of the cleaning chores they usually wouldn’t have time to get to. He vacuums, he dusts, he takes Lottie to the grocery store, and he gets bored. There are only so many surfaces he can clean, and eventually he finds himself in a spotless house with nothing more to do.

So, one day, Henry sits down at the desk in Alex’s office and starts to write.

It was always something he was passionate about doing, but he could never find time for the hobby. Now, he has ample time during the day. Why not finally take a crack at i?

At first, it doesn’t amount to anything. The first day he started writing, he tossed five unfinished word documents in the trash can on his computer.

The second day gets a little easier. He had just gotten into a groove when the alarm on his phone went off to remind him to pick up Ellie from school. When he tried returning to that document after dinner, he found him unable to get back into that same rhythm.

Alex had found him hunched over his computer in his study after doing the dishes.

“Whatcha working on, baby?” He had asked.

Henry had blushed furiously. “Don’t laugh.”

“When have I ever not laughed at you?”

“Alex.”

Alex had walked over to Henry and sat down on the edge of the desk. “I promise I won’t laugh. What’s up?”

“I’m… writing. Like, actually writing. Or, trying to write.”

Alex blinked. Then, his eyes had widened. “Holy shit? Hen, that’s amazing! Is it like a novel or…?”

“Yes, the goal is for it be a novel, eventually.”

“That’s amazing, baby. I’m proud of you.” Alex beamed, then took Henry’s hands in his. “Just promise me, when you become a famous New York Times Bestseller, you won’t forget about me and the kids.”

Henry had barked out a laugh. “That’s sweet, darling. But I don’t think that will be happening any time soon.”

It would happen soon. Well, kind of. He had sent the three hundred pages he wrote over six months to Bea’s publishing company, asking her if it was anything. Apparently, it was, because he was getting calls from publishers and editors that worked for her, who were all fighting to be a part of this novel.

After being published a year later, his debut queer romance novel went straight to number one on the New York Times Bestsellers list, just as Alex had predicted. His family surprised him with a cake that said “congrats daddy!” in scribbly blue frosting. They also decorated the brownstone with balloons that corresponded with the colors of the book cover.

Finding out he made it to the Bestsellers list was pretty sweet, but he thinks the cake with his daughters’ handwriting is sweeter.

A year after the hype died down around the first book, Henry sat down and got back to work writing the sequel.  This one took a little longer for Henry to write, because Lottie was starting preschool that same year, and it was a big adjustment for not just her, but for Alex and Henry.

He eventually did finish the novel, because here he is, back in New York two years later with the final draft bound in his hands. He’s heading to a meeting with his publishers, then he’s going to spend the rest of the day with Pez, June, and Nora before flying back home tomorrow morning.

Even though Henry and Alex moved to Austin, June and Nora stayed in New York for June’s journalist job. Henry thinks Pez also had something to do with their decision to stay, but he will never tell Alex that.

His meeting just so happened to be scheduled on Halloween, and when Pez found out Henry was going to be back in New York on Halloween, he shrieked into the phone.

“It will be like old times Hazza!”

And yeah, spending time with his best friend on Halloween is great, but he can’t help but feel like he’d rather be home with Alex and the girls. Alex had promised to FaceTime him and take a bunch of pictures of their costumes. Ellie is going dressed as Hermione from Harry Potter, and little Lottie is dressing as Dorothy the dinosaur from the Wiggles. He’d love to be there to help get them ready, but he knows Alex will have it all under control.

Ten minutes later, he gets a text from Alex as he’s in the elevator, heading up to his meeting.

baby

where the fuck is ellie’s wand

The elevator doors open, and he quickly types out a response before heading into his meeting.

She wanted to make her wand, remember? Because the wands are made for them in the books, she didn’t want a store bought one.

jesus fucking christ

who raised this girl

With a fond roll of his eyes, he pockets his phone, puts it on silent, and heads into his meeting.

***

The meeting is going smoothly until a woman, who Henry recognizes as the secretary that checked him in, walks into the conference room. She has a handheld phone clenched tightly in her hand.

"Excuse me, Henry Fox?" she asks timidly. "There’s someone on the phone for you."

Henry looks around at the other people at the table, who all look equally confused. Then, he turns to the secretary. “Can you tell them to take a message and I’ll ring them back when we’re done here?”

The woman frowns. “It’s your husband, Alex.”

Henry mirrors the woman’s face. Alex never calls his work, he knows how important this meeting is. If he’s calling the publishing company instead of his mobile, it must be something bad.

The woman mistakenly takes Henry’s silence as confirmation to keep going.

“He says it’s an emergency—“

Henry is on his feet and plucking the phone from the woman’s hand before she can even finish that sentence. He mumbles apologies, then walks into one of the empty conference rooms down the hall and shuts the door behind him.

He takes a deep breath, puts the phone up to his ear, and says: “Alex?”

“Hey, sweetheart,” Alex rushes out. He also sounds out of breath, and it sounds like he’s calling Henry from the bluetooth connection in his car. He hears a horn honk, then Alex yells: “out of the fucking way, asshole!”

“Alex,” Henry cuts in. “What’s going on? Why aren’t you at work?”

“Okay, don’t freak out.”

“That is not how you should have started that sentence. I’ve been freaking out every day of my life.”

Alex huffs out a frustrated breath. Henry imagines he’s running a hand through his hair. “Fuck, I’m sorry. Okay, it’s Lottie.”

Henry feels like he might throw up. “What? Is she okay? What’s going on?”

“They had a Halloween party at school,” another horn honks, “and there was candy. And turns out she’s really fucking allergic to hazelnuts.”

“What?”

“Yeah, she had a really bad allergic reaction. The teacher immediately called 911, then called me. I’m on my way to the hospital to meet the ambulance.”

“Ambulance?” Henry repeats. He is hearing the words Alex is saying, but doesn’t feel like he’s processing them.

“Yeah, her teacher went with her.” Alex sighs. “My mom is going to pick Ellie up from school and watch her for as long as we need, so don’t worry—“

“A little late for that love,” Henry says, trying to control his breathing.

“I’m sorry to spring this on you. I know you have your meeting—“

“Fuck the meeting, Alex.”

“And Pez—“

“Pez will understand. I will take the next available flight and meet you at the hospital.”

Alex is silence for a beat, then says: “I know how you feel about hospitals.”

Henry’s stomach sinks. Alex has a fair point, it’s impossible for Henry to even look at a hospital without being reminded of when he watched his father slowly die in one. But this is his daughter, and she’s not dying of cancer, so he can do this. For her.

“It’s fine,” Henry says, as steady as he can. “I’ll be fine. I’ll be there as soon as I can. Text me updates and I’ll text you my whereabouts.”

“Fuck you!” Alex suddenly shouts, then another horn blares. “Sorry, that wasn’t for you. I’m driving like I’m on fucking Formula One right now.”

“Please be careful, darling.”

“You too, baby. I will text you updates as I get them. I’m sorry about this. I love you.”

“Alex, this is not your fault. Don’t apologize,” Henry says. “I love you too. See you soon.”

***

Turns out the next available flight Henry is able to catch isn’t until four p.m. and has an hour layover in Charlotte. If he doesn’t take that flight, he’d have to wait four more hours for the next flight that goes to Austin. Henry doesn’t have that kind of time, his daughter is in the fucking hospital.

When Henry came back into the meeting, the publishing company took in the state of him and understood why he had to go immediately. They even set a new date for the meeting next month.

June, Nora, and Pez also understood. They even offered to go back to Austin with Henry, like the saints they are. Henry politely told them they didn’t have to, and they’d be FaceTiming them later on.

Henry takes a seat at the gate, texts Alex where he is, and pulls out a book while he waits the next few hours for his flight. That’s all he can do right now. Wait.

***

Henry doesn’t land in Austin until eleven that night. The seatbelt sign off isn’t even off yet, and Henry is already rushing to the front of the plane with his bags to be the first one off. He’s not usually that guy, but he has places to be.

Before he's even out of the terminal, Henry has his phone in his hand and he’s calling an Uber. The Uber picks him up from the airport, drops him and his luggage off at home, then takes him to hospital.

According to the texts from Alex, the doctors wanted to keep Lottie overnight until the swelling of her rashes went down and her breathing evened out. Alex had texted Henry saying he would be spending the night with Lottie and Ellie would be spending the night at Ellen's.

It's just after midnight when he makes it to the hospital. It's November 1st. He missed Halloween.

After the Uber drops him off, Henry stands outside of the hospital just to take a moment for himself. He takes deep breaths and wills himself to put on a brave face for Lottie and Alex. He told Alex he would be fine, and he knows he doesn’t need to prove that to Alex. He needs to do this for himself. So, he takes one last deep breath, and walks in through the sliding doors.

He tells the nurses at the front desk who he is and who he’s there for, and a kind nurse leads him to where Lottie is. On the walk there, he tries to ease the tightness in his shoulders. Hospitals just feel so sterile. It makes Henry feel like a tightly wound rubber band that’s about to snap.

The nurse stops in front of a door. “They’re in here waiting for you. Are you staying the night?”

Henry nods.

The nurse smiles at him. “Well, we’ll see you in the morning. Have a good night and I hope Lottie gets better.”

Henry smiles tightly. “Thank you.”

Once the nurse walks away, Henry turns to face the door of Lottie’s room. Quietly, he begins to push the door open every so slowly, and suddenly, he’s sixteen again, and his father is in that bed, dying, dying, dying…

“Daddy?”

Henry blinks the image away. Of course, it’s not his father in that bed. It’s his daughter, Lottie, and curled around her little body with a phone propped on his stomach is his husband, Alex.

He takes in the sight of Lottie. Her face is still a little puffy, and there’s red rashes splashed across her arms and face, but she seems to be in good spirits despite all that. She’s swapped the Dorothy the dinosaur costume, which is now sitting in a ball on the floor, for Barbie pajamas. It looks like Alex even French braided her hair into two pigtails. 

“Darling,” he whispers, quietly shutting the door behind him. He rushes over to her side of the bed and presses a kiss to Lottie’s forehead. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t be here sooner. Are you alright?”

She nods, like the brave little five year old she is. “Better now. Papa is here. And the purse’s are really nice.”

Alex smiles fondly next to her. “They’re called nurse’s, mija.” Alex looks up at Henry and smiles. “Hey, baby.”

“Hi, love. What are you two still doing up? It’s past midnight,” Henry says, bringing a chair over to sit on the other side of Lottie’s bed.

“We wanted to wait for you, duh,” Lottie says, rolling her eyes. “We’re watching Coco. You should watch with us.”

“I’d love to,” Henry says.

The three of them crowd in together so they can all see Alex’s phone screen, where they’re watching the movie. They watch about fifteen minutes of it before Lottie starts softly snoring. Alex quietly turns off the movie, and Henry brings his chair around to Alex’s side to talk to him.

“Hi,” Alex whispers. “Welcome home.”

“Hi. Missed you,” Henry whispers back. “How does she seem?”

Alex sighs. “The doctor’s said it was an allergic reaction, but they also think that it set off an anxiety attack, which is why she couldn’t breathe for so long.” The words hit Henry like a brick. “She’s definitely brave for her age. I wonder who she gets that from,” he says, nudging Henry.

“I just wish I could’ve been here sooner,” Henry says sadly.

“It’s okay, baby, you’re here now,” Alex says, kissing Henry’s head. “My mom sent me pictures of Ellie in her costume, but it’s not the same as being there.” He smiles sadly. “I’m sorry our Halloween sucked this year.”

Henry shakes his head, taking Alex’s hand in his. “Darling, every Halloween with you so far has been absolutely magical.”

🎃 🎃 🎃