Grandma's Halloween Guardian [Fiction]

"What are you doing?" Katie's shrill voice sounded like a loud explosion in Winston's small ears. Or maybe because he was caught doing something he didn't want anyone to know about. Except one person dear to him.

He staggered to his feet and turned to partially cover the image he was painting on the stone wall of the barn. Katie drew close, a step at a time, her eyes widened and her mouth opened. "It's none of your business. Why are you following me?"

She scrunched up her nose at her younger brother. "Uh, so that you don't get spanked for doing something naughty…," she paused and gently pushed him aside to see his painting, "....like this!" Her voice rose an octave as she waved towards the wall.

Winston stood on tiptoes and clamped a stubby hand on her mouth. Katie struck off his hand. "Please don't tell. It's for grandma," he explained.

"Grandma? Why?"

"You know how she gets every Halloween. She's always sad, says she misses grandpa and waits for him here on the night of Halloween."

"Okay….I don't get it."

"Mom says that's when the dead, you know, ghosts can come visiting their loved ones. She says it's not right because their loved ones can't move on if they visit everytime."

"Ohhh, I see."

"I don't want grandma to be sad anymore."

^{Image credit: @wakeupkitty}

Katie stared at Winston's painting of a ghost with a long nose like Pinocchio, trapped in between a red circle with a line drawn downwards in the middle to stop the ghost from passing through. "Kinda looks like the picture on Ghostbusters?" She cast a doubtful look at her brother.

Winston shrugged, scratched his hair and part of the red paint smeared on it. Katie rolled her eyes. "Your ghost is thin and has a long nose… ugh, you've got paint on your hair. Now Momma will spank you for real." He gasped and wiped the area with the back of his hand but more paint smeared on. "Stop. Just stop," Katie said.

"What do I do?" He looked genuinely afraid.

"I'll help you wash it off before dinner. Now, hurry up and finish. Let's hope grandma understands."

The two children completed the image and ran to the stream. At night, when the family was asleep, grandma Cora, dressed in her best gown strolled to the barn. She raised her hand to push the door open when her gaze fell on the image. She froze, bent down to get a good look.

"For you grandma, so you don't feel sad about grandpa. This picture won't let him come through."

Grandma Cora's frail body shook in her gown as she attempted to stifle a loud laugh. Her grandkids were simply adorable.

She entered the barn and shut the door. Only she understood that her reason for spending time in the barn was to cherish the memory of her soulmate, Grandpa Sullivan, who passed away on Halloween night while working there.

The End.

What I See

An image similar to the Ghostbusters logo but this ghost looks thin with a long nose

What I Feel

Nostalgia, cherishing memories of loved ones.

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