OREO

It was Halloween.

Tim and Tom were all prepared for the very big night in which they would go ‘trick or treating’ on their own for the first time. The twins were so excited that Tim could barely eat that day. Tom, on the other hand, did not get enough sleep so now he was about to pass out on the coach. His brother, however, did the best he could to keep him awake.

-         Okay, so… I sew your mask, Tim - try not to rip it off again. And Tom?

-         Wake up! – Tim threw a cushion at him.

-         Would you leave your brother alone?! – Their mom shouted and then sighed. – Honestly, I am not sure if this is a good idea or not…

-         It is the best idea you have ever had, mom. – Tim grinned.

-         See, that smile of yours gives me the opposite message…

The woman left the monster mask on the coffee table and looked at her boys. Although they were twins they were so different, so individual, yet – inseparable.

-         Tom, if you are too tired you can stay home, you know. – She glanced at him.

-         No, mom! I’m fine.

Under his brother’s watchful eye, Tom managed to sit up and hide his yawn.

-         Okay then, it’s almost seven – be careful and do not be late. Do you hear that, Tim?

-         Why me?!

-         Because you are the one to get us in trouble. – Tom murmured.

They quickly put on their costumes – once their mom headed to the kitchen to get the pumpkin bags, Tim and Tom rushed towards the cupboard and grabbed a torch from there.

-         Here – she passed the bags, walking in. – stay IN the neighborhood. Understood, Tim?

-         Mom! – He frowned.

No matter how old, they would always be her precious little boys. They would one day understand that.

           Now, however, they felt so grown-up, so brave to go out at dawn, being ten! Such bravery and confidence burst through their chest that they walked around like proud chicken, not realizing how funny they actually are.

           Tim dressed as a… Well, apparently a monster, judging by his hand-made mask, and Tom as a small version of Count Dracula, rushed outside under their mother’s watchful eye.

-         We gather some candy as a diversion until she walks back home and we go, okay? – instructed Tim.

-         Got it! – His brother nodded.

Once the woman assured herself her kids were off to a safe journey, the two quickly changed pace and ran towards a darker side of the street.

-         What if it doesn’t work out right away? We must wait…– said Tom.

-         I know it and I don’t care. We will spend all night there if we have to!

-         Mom will freak out.

-         She will forgive us when all of us come back home. Come on!

The two ran into the night, breaking all set rules on their first night of parent-free ‘trick or treating’. They jumped over a fence, crossed a lonesome road and were soon in front of the town’s graveyard.

           Then, they stopped.

-         Let’s go. – Tim mumbled.

-         Don’t be scared.

-         I’m not scared.

-         You are.

-         So are you!

-         I am, but we must do it. It’s the only way. Santa didn’t do the trick… - said Tom in a sad tone.

-         Because that is not his job! Don’t blame him. – Tim took a deep breath. – You do such things on Halloween, not Christmas… Come on.

Walking around the gravestones made them shiver. The silence could terrify everyone there – even the dead. Tim and Tom were both afraid to say a word, but they occasionally looked at each other, knowing they have their backs.

After a while they got to one of the corners, where a big wooden sign said ‘PET CEMETARY’.

-         Oreo! We’re here buddy! – shouted Tim, breaking the creepy silence.

-         Tim, be quiet, someone might hear us! – Tom pulled out the torch from his pocket and started to look around for something. – Find me some rocks.

As one of the twins was searching, the other was setting up a ritual. They put a bunch of stones around a circle and after placed an old dog collar in the middle of it.

-         We need to say the words correctly. – Tom explained. – I need you to focus.

-         I have never been more focused in my life. You sure this will work?

-         Of course it will, I saw it on TV! – Tom placed a tiny candle next to the collar. – Now we just need to wait until midnight and then...

-         Hope it happens.

The boys sat in the darkness, with not a living soul, but them, to be found. Even the birds were far away, as well as the bats and all the creepy crawlies they feared to meet.

Hours passed, the curfew long forgotten in the name of something greater. And the clock stroke midnight.

-         As we rehearsed it? Okay? – Tom trembled and lit the candle.

They held hands and started to murmur words, most of which made no sense at all – but they did it so confident and with such passion they quickly forgot about the silence, forgot about the surroundings and just raised their voices with hope, repeating again and again those obscure words… All with the thought of bringing back Oreo back to life.

-         Did it…work? – Tim opened his eyes.

It was all suddenly so silent again.

-         Give it time… - Tom looked around.

-         Maybe we need to…

-         HURRY UP, YOU IDIOT!

They froze.

-         I AM DOING THE BEST I CAN!

Strange, hoarse voices echoed in the night. Two black shadows were walking around the graveyard, one carrying a shovel.

-         Where the hell is she?!

-         How should I know?! – groaned the tall one. – Probably around here somewhere.

-         I swear to God, if we don’t find the ring I’m going to kill you! – The short one roared.

-         Relax, we will. And finally, we will be rich!

-         Yeah, well before that, you must do some digging…

Tim and Tom got as pale as ghosts.

-         Maybe we should tell them we’re here? They’re adults, we can go home… - Tom whispered.

-         Are you mad? – Tim whispered back. – We’ll get in trouble! Keep it down!

-         Here she is! The old Vera. My, I hated the old hag. – The short man stopped and looked at a gravestone. – I will be more than happy to get that ring of yours. START DIGGING!

The tall figure carried out the order.

-         Tim, I’m scared, let’s go home!

-         No, what about Oreo?!

-         What about us? – Tom panicked.

As he did so, he leaned on a stick that cracked as loud as possible.

-         WHO’S THERE?! – The short man shouted.

The boys lay on the ground, breathless, blood pumping in their ears.

-         Go check things out… - a voice whispered, but loud enough for the boys to hear it.

Tim tried to get up and have a better look of things and once he saw the men going in a different direction, gave a sign to his brother to follow him. They stood up a little bit and tried to hide somewhere else, far out of sight. The fence was too tall for both to hop over. Their only chance was to get out from the main entrance.

           The moon was not helpful at all, as it constantly hid itself behind dense clouds. The darkness was so overwhelming that Tim couldn’t help but trip over something.

-         THERE THEY ARE! – The tall man’s torch suddenly blinded the two boys as Tom was trying to help his brother.

-         CATCH THEM!

The kids tried to run away, but the place they were standing on was so muddy they couldn’t help but slow down the pace – and that was the moment when Tim got caught by the back – a cold hand squeezing his jacket.

-         Let me go! – he cried.

-         Make a move and I cut his throat! – said the man and pulled out a pocket knife.

Tom petrified.

-         Hey, mate! I caught them!

-         Good job, good job!

Both were now in close sight, enough for the boys to see that those people were both dangerous and in desperate need of a shower. Teeth yellow and hair – greasy – those two were definitely criminals, judging also by the greedy look in their eyes.

-         What do we do with them now? – asked the tall one.

-         Killing them will cause too much trouble… - the short started thinking out loud.

-         We won’t tell! – cried Tom. – We promise!

-         Tell what?

-         About the ring! We won’t even say we were here! – Tim gasped.

-         Oh, so you did hear about the ring then. – The short man frowned and started to think – something not natural for him, apparently. – We have no guarantee you won’t tell, now, do we, boys?

-         We swear, we won’t! – Tom shivered. – Please!

-         How much trouble could it actually cost us, though? – The tall man asked. – We can just throw them in the pit once we dig up the ring?

-         Oh, that would solve some problems, yes. No one would find them. – The other one agreed. – Let’s do it.

Gruesome, cruel smiles embellished their faces as the kids shouted for help, kicking and punching the dark silhouettes that dragged them deeper into the shadows.

                       The candle flickered.

-         What a night, what a night! – said one of them. – We get to have fun while getting rich!

The tall man pulled out a rope from the nearby backpack and was just about to tie the twins, when all heard a growl.

-         What was that? – He asked.

-         Just some mud, keep it up; someone may come if you continue to blabber! And shut their mouths so they’ll stop crying!

Once again, as he was about to tie them up, he heard a growl.

-         There is something here!

-         There is only static in your head, I said – HURRY UP! – The short one grabbed the shovel himself and started digging.

Suddenly something emerged from nowhere and bit the tall man’s leg – he jumped and screamed as he looked around and saw nothing.

-         What the bloody hell… - the short one could not even finish his sentenced as the same happened to him. – It’s an animal!

-         Where is it?!

-         Tim, hurry! – Tom grabbed his brother’s hand and pulled him back up.

The boys started running towards the graveyard’s entrance.

-         They are trying to escape! Catch them!

Chased by the robbers, the twins couldn’t turn around and see what was happening behind. They could only hear curses and shouts from the men, hoarse voices staying far away in the distance as they sprinted.

-         Tim, look! Look!

The trees got colored by red and blue lights, as a car passed near the graveyard road. Tom ran faster and got to the gate first.

-         Tim, they are leaving, quickly!

           But his brother was too curious so he turned around as the noises got even more and more disturbing, shouts turning to scared screeches, and curses to prayers.

-         TIM! NOW! They are leaving! – Although hesitant, his brother left him behind and sprang towards the police car, calling for help.

The two robbers were terrified; clothes ripped to pieces, laying scared on the ground, afraid to move a muscle, yet shivering.

And as the police car was closing by, sirens now echoing loudly, Tim swore he could see something familiar. Maybe, just maybe, that brownish thing right there was not a bush, nor a withered branch.

-         POLICE! STAY WHERE YOU ARE!

And again, just maybe it wagged its tail, before it disappeared.