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“Hurry up! We are going to miss out on all the candy!” A high-pitched voice called out from the porch, stomping her impatient foot for her parents to leave the house already.
“Have a little patience, Annabelle,” Hubert replied, grabbing his keys and shoving them into his back pocket. He gave her a stern look, glaring through the screen door to spot his daughter pouting. “Your papa is almost finished getting ready.”
“Fiiiiine.” She grumbled, crossing her arms across her chest.
Rolling his eyes, Hubert went over to the first floor bathroom and gently knocked. He pushed it open to spot his husband double checking his makeup in the mirror. Ferdinand had drawn on a few stitches across his face and two bright red dots on his cheeks to appear like a scarecrow. His hair was brushed out and kept under a straw hat, and he was wearing a raggedy shirt that he had personally sewn himself out of various fabrics with faded overalls on top. The patch-work appearance and pieces of straw glued to the sleeves and legs helped to really sell the look.
“Does everything look alright?” Ferdinand asked, turning towards Hubert.
“You look wonderful,” His husband replied, reaching forward to caress his cheek. “But if we do not hurry, Annie is going to throw a fit.”
“I cannot blame her for her excitement,” He leaned into the touch, chuckling softly at the silver face paint across Hubert’s face. “Halloween is such a wonderful holiday.”
Pulling apart, Hubert took Ferdinand by the hand and led him out to their front porch. The two men stepped outside, much to the amusement of their daughter. Annabelle beamed at them, giggling at the sight of her fathers dressed up to match with her. She took her treat bag from Ferdinand as Hubert locked the door behind them. Then, she held out a hand towards each of them so that she could walk in between them while they headed down towards the sidewalk.
Strolling through the neighborhood, the hours for trick-or-treating had just begun. There were many families roaming the streets, going door to door for some sweets. It was a very pleasant atmosphere, especially as little Annabelle hummed and grinned as she walked along with her fathers. The sight of her filled with so much joy caused Hubert’s heart to swell within his chest. Watching her brown eyes light up at the fantastic decorations on various houses was truly priceless.
Annabelle looked absolutely adorable tonight, too. She was wearing a blue checkered dress with sparkling red shoes, her black hair was braided into two sections, tiny blue bows were on each pigtail, and she wore a tiny woven basket on her arm. She had begged to dress up like Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, and she also pleaded to have her parents match with her. Hence, Ferdinand was all dolled up as a scarecrow, while Hubert wore a slightly cumbersome silver costume with bulky arms and a cylindrical torso to resemble the Tin Man. He had only painted his face since he refused to wear a mask all night, but he did have a tiny funnel on his head.
Whenever the family would reach a house that was passing out candy, Ferdinand and Hubert would allow Annabelle to rush up to grab the treats on her own. She used to like them going up with her, but now she was starting to want a little bit of independence. Of course, she was still very young and attached to her parents, but such signs were worrisome to Ferdinand.
Standing back as Annabelle stood in line for her turn to grab some candy, he frowned slightly and let his shoulders droop. It was exciting to see his little girl grow up into a beautiful princess, but it also was a scary thought to think about time passing so fast. He could still recall going through the hassle of paperwork in order to adopt her four years back. It had been difficult to get through all the hoops of the system, but it had been worth it when he and Hubert got to take her home to start their little family. She had truly brought a special light of her own to their home.
Now, Annabelle was already seven years old and was getting bigger with each passing day. He was terrified of blinking and missing out on all of these precious moments. He was lucky to see her so often when she was very little with his writing job being stationed at his home, but now she went on to school five days a week. Their time was cut short, but she did seem to enjoy her classes and peers. Only once had they ever been called into the office for misbehavior after smacking a boy who had been pulling on her hair. Ferdinand had tried to chastise her, but he knew Hubert had been rather proud that she defended herself. He couldn’t really argue with that logic either.
“Ferdinand, what’s bothering you?” Hubert asked, pulling his husband out of his own mind.
“Oh! Nothing at all. Just a bit lost in thought…” He tried to laugh, but it sounded far too forced.
“Dear,” Hubert lowered his voice into a more serious tone. It was the same voice he used on their daughter when she needed a small scolding. “You know you have to be honest with me. I can see right through your poor attempts at lies.”
“Hmmph, I know. You were always the one better at hiding the truth,” He shook his head, glancing at the line of kids and then back at his husband. “I’ve just been worried about Annie. She’s just… growing up so quickly.”
Hubert nodded slowly, slipping an arm around the other’s waist. He pulled him closer, giving him a small hug from the side. He was not the most affectionate man in public, but he did not want to see his beloved looking so glum. He nudged against his neck, pressing a kiss to his jaw and up to his cheek before whispering in a gentle voice.
“I worry about her, too. I want to keep her safe as our little girl for as long as we can, but you know deep down she will be fine.” He assured him, watching as Annabelle grabbed her candy and was pointing towards her parents by the sidewalk. They both waved back at her and the kind elder woman who was holding the large treat bowl.
“How can I know that, though?”
“Because she’s our kid. If she has you and myself looking out for her, teaching her every step of the way, then there is no reason to be worried.” Hubert reached and took one of his hands, squeezing it in his own.
“Oh, Hubie…” Ferdinand took in a large breath and blinked away the urge to cry. He didn’t want to ruin the makeup he had taken so long to complete.
“You know better than anyone that I doubt my ability to be a father, but you convinced me to try. I’ve been grateful every day since you convinced me to go forward with starting a family of our own. It’s not easy. I know I’ve made mistakes, and I will make more, but—”
His voice was cut off by a gentle peck across the lips. Both men lost all the tension in their muscles, relaxing in the comforting embrace of each other. Everything else faded away for the briefest of moments. Ferdinand was there to pull Hubert up from his downward spiral, and Hubert was able to pull Ferdinand back down to reality.
“We will make them together, and learn from each one. Everything we do—”
“...We do it together.” Hubert finished the thought, knowing the mantra by heart.
Skipping down the driveaway, Annabelle stopped right in front of them and interrupted their private conversation. She grinned and reached into her bag, pulling out two pieces of candy. She handed one to each of her fathers, then giggled with glee.
“Papa! Dad! I asked the nice lady if I could have a piece for both of you, and she said yes! So, these are for you!” She chirped, looking mighty proud of herself.
“Oh! Thank you, sweetie!” Ferdinand gushed, leaning down to kiss the top of her forehead.
“Thanks, Annie.” Hubert said, going to press a kiss right beside his husband.
Getting between her parents, Annabelle found her spot and grabbed their hands again. She began to hum and sing a little song as they continued to walk down the road to find even more candy. There was a lot of traveling still to do, and plenty of candy to collect. Ferdinand had even stuffed an extra bag in a pocket in his overalls in case she needed it.
As they strolled throughout the neighborhood, Ferdinand felt his heart grow lighter. These moments were to be cherished, and he didn’t want to waste a single second worrying about the future. So, he focused on the moment with his darling husband and daughter. The three of them were quite a sight to see. They skipped, laughed, and sang together while traveling down all the nearby roads in the area.
By the end of the night, Hubert had to carry Annabelle in his arms back to their house, while Ferdinand held the two bags of candy. The two quietly chatted on the walk home, keeping their voices down as their daughter was falling asleep in the warmth of her dad’s embrace.
Their little princess was exhausted from all the fun she had, so her fathers happily got her ready and tucked into bed before sitting down to check through the candy and steal a piece or two for themselves. It was another wonderful Halloween.