An Unlikely Treat - Flash Fiction
Updated: 2 days ago
A Halloween flash fiction about the awkward end of childhood. In “An Unlikely Treat,” Greg Luti follows three teenagers on their final trick-or-treating round as they knock on a door and find an old woman who offers something other than candy.
When I was a kid trick-or-treating, I performed an act that now, when I mention it, seems like childish fun more than anything else. When a few friends and I would go trick-or-treating, I took the most candy from the container left out. Of course, there would be a sign warning that I should only take one, but I realized that the consequences of my actions were limited, so I took whatever I could. I was at the age where costumes were more of a signal that I was still celebrating the holiday and had not outgrown the act of asking my neighbors for candy, and school seemed like a foolish idea. I spent hours every day learning about information I may never need and was being told that I not only needed that information but that without it, my life would be seen as a failure. Taking a few extra pieces of candy was not above my adolescent brain, although in the back of my mind, I did know it was wrong.
The last time I went trick-or-treating is the story I am to tell you now.
I was dressed as an athlete because I had on a jersey. My other buddy, Jack, wore an orange shirt that read, “This is my costume.” And the third person in the crew was Brett, who wore that Scream costume with the face.
We performed our usual roundabouts like we have done in years past on the cool fall day.
We would go to a house, ask for some candy, address the uncomfortable question of our age, and move on. As I said, we were at the age where we could walk around the entire town without any guidance, but also the age where trick-or-treating was becoming a bit strange. We don’t have any word for that in our language, but there must be something to describe the unusual dichotomy of the holiday. We were not there to be cute, or even say, “Happy Halloween,” but to get some candy.
After a few blocks in, we reached a house on the corner of the block. We stopped because we had to decide whether to even bother with this house. If we didn’t go to it, we weren’t coming back to it, since that would mean our route would have to make us turn around. It was now or never with this one.
“What about this house?” Jack asked.
“Man, this house stinks. They don’t give any candy.” Brett answered immediately.
“Do they leave any out?” The orange-costumed friend asked.
“I don’t know,” Brett said.
I didn’t listen to them as I read a sign on the door. “We don’t have candy. But we have
prayers. Press to receive one.” I pressed the button without much thinking.
“Prayers?!” Brett proclaimed. “I am going to another house.” He walked across the lawn towards the next house.
Jack looked at me, uncertain of the situation. “I mean, maybe it is a test. Maybe they have candy.”
We stood there for what seemed like forever. After waiting for the time, Jack turned to me, “Bro, there is no one home.” He walked away. “Isn’t it a sin to lie? They are lying that they are even home.”
I watched him go to the next house. When I turned back around, there was an old woman, the age of my grandma, opening the door. I helped her open it completely, and then she asked, “I don’t have any candy this year. I do have something for you, if you will accept it. I have a prayer. Would you like to say a prayer with me, young man?”
In reality, I didn’t want to hear a prayer. I didn’t even want to be on the stoop of the woman’s home, but I felt it would be rude to just get up and leave. I didn’t know much about prayers, but it felt mean to say no to being given one. Plus, it seemed wrong to say no to someone the age of my grandma.
She reached out her wrinkly hands. “Here.” I didn’t know what she was doing. “Take my hands. We will say a prayer together. What is your name?”
I put down my candy bag and told her my name. She began speaking, “Lord, I come to you for a favor for my little friend here, Pat. Now Pat needs your help, Lord. He, like so many, is on a path they don’t understand. Sometimes that path can be scary. Sometimes it can even be a bit confusing. Let him see your light on that path. Let him know that he always has you as a companion on his journey. And let him not forget, he is never really lost if he is going towards your light. Amen.”
She unclasped my hands and tilted her head towards me. “There you go, son.”
I reached into my bag and gave the senior a piece of candy. “I… I was only supposed to take one. But I took more than that.”
She smirked at me. “I don’t want your candy, son. Just remember that when things get tough for you, the Lord still sees the good in you. Don’t give people candy. Give them something better.”
I put the candy back in my bag and wished her a happy Halloween.
It took me until the end of the block to catch up to the other two. When I finally got to them, Jack and Brett were sitting on the curb waiting for me.
“Hey, how was that prayer house? Did she give you any candy?” Jack asked.
“Nah, man. No one was there.”
“Prayers on Halloween! Who does that? That is so freaking stupid!” Brett proclaimed,
already eating one of his candy bars.
“Yeah… yeah…”
That was the last year I went trick-or-treating. I was too old to go after that.
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