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Shiro checks his list, and then checks it again. He’s taken the day off to get the house ready, and Keith will be home from work soon. It’s taken a few weeks of planning, but as he looks around, the butterflies in Shiro’s stomach are ones of excitement rather than nerves.
From the outside, their place looks almost identical to the ones on the rest of the street. Inside, however, is a different story. Shiro wonders if he may have got a bit carried away with all the fake cobwebs and plastic spiders. The rows of cute pumpkin string lights illuminating each room and weaving up the sides of the staircase, however, are just the right side of too many.
Halloween isn’t technically until Saturday, and Lance has already invited everyone to his party. Tonight is just for them. Knowing that Keith isn’t at his most comfortable with crowds, even when his closest friends are there, Shiro wants to share some holiday traditions with the person he loves most.
“What do you think, boy? Have we done enough?” Shiro asks as Kosmo jumps up from his bed and waits by the door, tail thumping on the floor. A moment later, the roar of Keith’s bike gets steadily louder. Shiro turns the lights down slightly so that it feels a bit more eerie [but not so much that he won’t be able to see anything], and hopes the house smells of the pumpkin spice candles he lit a half hour ago.
“Hey,” Keith says, just about getting the door open before Kosmo jumps up to welcome him home.
Shiro tries hard to suppress his grin as he watches Keith notice that the small key tray on the table by the coat rack has been replaced by a little plastic cauldron. He looks increasingly confused as he takes in the rest of Shiro’s hard work, and downright surprised when he really looks up at him before angling up for a kiss.
Shiro kisses him as gently as possible, but puckers his lips far more than usual.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m a vampire!” Shiro answers around a mouthful of fake plastic fangs. He does a twirl to show off his cape, hoping for graceful but not caring if he looks dorky. He has been with Keith for long enough to know that their love is unconditional. The rings on their fingers didn’t make that aspect of their relationship any more official.
“I noticed. Why are you a vampire? Lance’s party is is still three days away.”
“Because I want to drink your blood!” Shiro says, doing his best Dracula impression.
Keith raises his eyebrows, looking more amused than curious.
Shiro can’t keep it going, and takes out the teeth. “Okay. Because I want us to have our own Halloween as a family. Me, you and Kosmo.”
“Shiro,” Keith says, voice full of fondness although he’s trying to complain. Shiro swears he can see the slight tension drop out of his shoulders as he starts to relax. It usually happens once Keith closes the door when he gets home, but the thought of having people over unexpectedly makes him a bit anxious sometimes. For both Shiro and Keith, their time together is their sanctuary.
“I got a costume for you. It’s upstairs in the closet.”
*****
By the time Keith has changed, Shiro has finished doing Kosmo’s costume.
“Why is our black dog now all shades of blue?” Keith asks, lifting his visor.
“Because he’s a …..wolf. A spooky space wolf. Not a dog wearing pet-safe fur mascara. Every astronaut should have a space wolf,” Shiro tells him, as Keith pretends that the floor is the surface of the Moon, and he is the first man to land on it. Eventually, Keith announces that the atmosphere is safe and takes off his helmet and gloves before exploring. He lifts a light from against the wall, handling the small plastic jack-o’-lantern carefully so as not to disturb the rest of the ones on the wire.
“So, space wolf, what are your opinions on our new home decor?”
Kosmo looks up at him, as relaxed as usual, before trotting off off to lie down on the floor between the table and the couch.
“He really likes it. He told me earlier. But what do you think?” Shiro asks, eagerly waiting for an answer.
“I think it’s neat.”
“You do?”
“Yeah. It’s really neat.” Keith says warmly. “So what’s first on your list?”
“What list?”
“Shiro, you always make a list. And it’s sticking out of your top pocket,” Keith says, gently tucking it back in. Shiro catches Keith’s hand with his own, and leads him to the table where three pumpkins are waiting.
“Pumpkin carving, huh?”
“Then dinner after.”
“So I’m guessing we’re having pumpkin and something.”
Shiro shrugs, not giving anything away. “Just know that I want to keep the innards of the pumpkins, please.”
Keith sits down and pulls his pumpkin towards him, and Shiro can practically see his mind working. There are two pumpkin carving kits already set out, and Keith does him the honor of at least examining each option before reaching across for his knife, just like Shiro knew he would.
“What design are you doing?” Shiro asks, beginning to carve his own.
Keith spins his blade on the table. “It’s a surprise,” he says, slicing the top off in one elegant motion.
They talk as they work, and time goes quickly. Shiro tells Keith about the conference call he had to take first thing before he could go shopping, and learns that Keith overheard Kolivan singing along to a power ballad when he thought everyone was out for lunch. The idea is so absurd that he has to get himself a glass of water. It is, of course, an orange glass patterned with little black cats.
“You really hit the jackpot at the dollar store.”
“Yes I did.”
Shiro is conscious of the fact that he wants to do the best job he can, but also that he has to keep to his schedule. He spends longer than anticipated on his own design, and has to delegate some of the responsibility in order to achieve his objective.
“Can you do Kosmo’s while I start dinner?” he asks, already knowing that Keith will do anything to help.
“Of course.” Keith takes care to ensure his design remains hidden and pulls the uncarved third one towards him to get back to work. Listening to music when they cook is something Keith loves to do, and Shiro puts on the playlist he made for them this morning. He can hear Keith quietly singing along, always slightly out of tune, and Shiro chops onions and tomatoes in time to the sound of his voice.
The blood and guts [spaghetti and tomato sauce] is a success, and nobody has to secretly sneak anything off their plate and give it to the dog, who is hanging out under the table. Not that it happens much when either of them cook, but they have both had absolute disasters in the kitchen.
While Keith does the dish, Shiro sets six apples in a bowl filled with water.
“Ohh, apple bobbing,” Keith says. “I’ve seen this on tv.”
It takes no more than three minutes for both of them to get their hair wet through. Although Shiro is tempted to push Keith out of the way and feels pretty sure that Keith is plotting the same, they both observe the rules of the game and fish for apples using only their teeth.
Keith is victorious, catching his apple first. Shiro nudges his elbow against Keith’s arm to congratulate him. Curbing his competitive streak was more than worth it to see Keith’s face light up with joy.
“That was so much fun!” Keith says, shaking his bangs out of his eyes , and brushing Shiro’s back off his face.
Shiro can feel his vampire makeup has run a little, but can’t find it within himself to care too much. Frightful is a good look for this holiday.
“You need to dry off.”
“You need to dry off.” Keith answers, scrubbing his hair with his hands in an attempt to get rid of some of the water. Shiro offers him a corner of his cape, and Keith graciously accepts the makeshift towel, making sure Shiro uses the other corner for himself.
*****
“I want us to watch a movie. A scary movie.” Shiro says, sitting on the couch. He’s using his motivational speech-giving voice, hoping the confidence comes through, but knowing that Keith will see through it. Regardless, he wants to prove to himself that he can do this.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea? You don’t have to sit through one just for me. Everything tonight has been great. More than great.”
“Keith, I am a grown adult with a responsible job and a mortgage. I can handle scary movies. I love scary movies.”
“No you don’t.”
“No, I don’t, but you do. And as your husband, I will sit through this with you. As long as you hold my hand.”
Keith dutifully takes his seat next to Shiro, who has something far, far out of his comfort zone queued up on Netflix. He doesn’t even have a logical reason for why he gets so creeped out by this kind of movie. Watching the trailers while he was trying to make his selection was bad enough.
Shiro presses play, and silently hands Keith a trick-or-treat bag already filled with candy.
“Instead of popcorn. I’m sorry we couldn’t go trick-or-treating for real. I know it’s a big Halloween thing,” Shiro whispers as the opening title sequence starts. It’s something subconsciously ingrained in both of them, even though they are at home. When the movie starts, voices are lowered.
Keith shakes his head. “Don’t tell anyone, but this is better,” he says quietly as their fingers brush when they both reach for a candy. Keith’s hand doesn’t move from his, and although Shiro knows that this part of the film is lulling him into a false sense of security, he begins to relax slightly and his mind begins to wander. He was worried that missing out on trick-or-treating would be a disappointment but it turns out Keith was right. At this moment in time, this is better.
A door slams on screen and makes Shiro jump, bringing his attention right back to the film.
“You ok?” Keith asks, concern evident in his voice. Shiro nods and Keith squeezes his hand. Shiro sits up a little straighter, as if to reaffirm to himself that he can do this. Kosmo lets out a little whine and goes upstairs. By the third jumpscare, Shiro is pretty sure he’s done with these sorts of films for life. Keith has been brave throughout, not letting go of his hand once and doing his best to reassure him, even though Shiro is now literally sitting on the edge of his seat. The fourth fright is so terrifying that he pushes backward, almost falling. Keith is lightning fast and catches him safely in his arms.
“How many times are you going to have to save me before this is over?”
“As many times as it takes.”
They lie on the couch, tangled in each other, and Keith whispers to Shiro that they can turn the movie off at any time. Shiro buries his face in the soft juncture between Keith’s neck and shoulder, and all the time they are close together like this, Shiro knows he can get through the remaining twenty three minutes and eleven seconds of the scariest film ever made.
*****
The second-to-last item on his list is something they have to go outside for, and Shiro thinks that maybe they should have done this before watching the movie. He moves a little closer to Keith, who is trying but failing to get his leather jacket on over his costume. Shiro does the gentlemanly thing and takes his cape off to wrap around Keith’s shoulders.
“No, you’ll be cold.”
“I’ll be fine.”
Keith reaches past him and grabs Shiro’s soft charcoal winter coat, helping him to put it on. Scarves and gloves are found too, and Shiro says that he wants to get the pumpkins lit before anything else. They work together in a comfortable silence, lining them up so they can be seen through the door of the back porch. It’s ridiculous but adorable, a set of three pumpkins each carved in their cute [but not particularly realistic] likenesses.
Being outside in the yard is colder than Shiro thought it would be, but they shouldn’t be out for too long. Stargazing is an anniversary tradition, but it’s still something they both love to do whenever they get the chance. Tonight, the inky sky is hidden by cloud cover, and there is too much light pollution for them to ever really see the stars from where they stand now.
Shiro has a solution. He’s done the research, and each sparkler should burn for two minutes and ten seconds. Shiro lights one before carefully handing it to Keith, who waits patiently for Shiro to light one for himself. Shiro draws a star in the air above them, and Keith follows his lead. Their makeshift constellation is gone in a moment, but no less beautiful for it.
They use up the rest of the pack without any trouble. Keith writes Shiro’s name, and then draws a heart. Shiro gasps with delight, and wholeheartedly returns the gesture. Both of them try to draw Kosmo before competition gets the best of them.
“We need to get back on message,” Shiro laughs, trying to cancel out Keith’s second attempt at a motorbike. “It has to be Halloween-y!”
“Okay, okay! What is that even meant to be, anyway? A tiny pumpkin with a weirdly long stalk?”
“A candy apple.” Shiro says, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
“Oh.”
“What is that?”
“A witches hat.”
Shiro raises his eyebrows, pretty sure that Keith won’t be able to see him in the shadows.
“Hey, I saw that.”
*****
It’s almost midnight, and Shiro tries unsuccessfully to hide another yawn. It’s been a busy few months for them both, and sometimes, when he pushes himself a bit too much, the tiredness overwhelms him.
He smiles affectionately at Keith, whose cheeks are dusted red with cold.
“Hot chocolate.” Keith says, no doubt in his voice.
“What?”
“The last thing on your list. It’s hot chocolate, right?”
“Am I that predictable? How do you know it’s not a pumpkin spice latte that I’m going to make?”
“Because you love hot chocolate, and you don’t drink coffee after three in the afternoon because it keeps you awake. But I want to make it for you. To say thank you for doing all this for me tonight,” he says, standing up. Shiro feels a gentle kiss on the top of his head as Keith goes to the kitchen.
“I’ll go with you.” Shiro says, following him into the kitchen, still not wanting to be too far away.
He reaches up to to the top cupboard where they keep their mugs, and selects their usual two.
“So what are you going to use the pumpkin insides for?” Keith asks, opening the refrigerator door.
“Soup, maybe. And I think I read somewhere that pumpkin is good for dogs, but I want to check that out in more detail first.”
Shiro leans against the counter while the milk heats, watching while Keith scoops the cocoa. There’s something almost soothing in the comfort of their domesticity.
“One hot chocolate with whipped cream but no sprinkles.” Keith says, setting his mug in front of him.
“Mmm. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. And maybe we can do this every year,” Keith says, placing a tender kiss on his cheek. “I love you.”
Shiro blushes, knowing he will never be over the thrill of hearing those words.
“I love you too.”