“No.” Tawson moved back to grab his outfit. “It was either this one or one that was two sizes larger, I think.”
“Yeah, because he would never intentionally make you wear tight fitting clothes that he could ogle all night.”
“Hey, you shut it.” Joe laughed at Tawson’s words. “Also, I really like the added blush.”
“That would be me, so maybe you should stop being so mean.” Vic switched legs and repeated the same motions as thefirst one. “Vic, you need to remind your lover that I’ll always come first for you.”
“Behave,” Vic said. They looked from Joe to Tawson. “Both of you.”
“That wasn’t a denial!” Joe called out to Tawson’s back. The door to Vic’s bedroom shut without a response.
“I’m so glad you two are cool with each other,” Vic said. The words were supposed to come out more playful than they did. Joe finished adjusting the second pant leg before standing up.
“Anyone that makes you as happy as you’ve been the past month is good in my books,” Joe said. They wrapped each other in a tight hug for a long moment.
“I love you.”
“I know you do,” Joe whispered back. Vic laughed and the moment was broken.
Twenty minutes later, all three of them were walking toward the center of campus. The tables were spread all throughout the campus and everything looked amazing. Joe snagged pieces of candy from each table they passed, handing some off to Vic. One of the more elaborate tables had a balloon arch. They were orange, yellow, and black. Vines and darker flowers were woven between them. It looked amazing.
While Joe was talking animatedly, commenting on most of the scenery and decorations, Tawson was on Vic’s other side keeping quiet. They looked over and caught his eye. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I’m good.” Tawson said. “Halloween isn’t really my jam.”
Vic reached out subtly and squeezed Tawson’s hand. “We’ll make it fun tonight. Plus, you’re staying at my place tonight, right? Maybe Buzz and Woody could have a little fun of theirown.”
Tawson did look good in his costume. It wasn’t near as tight as Vic’s, but it still fit snug enough. He didn’t have the helmet and the purple hood was hanging behind his neck. He claimed it made him look balder than he already was. But the glasses he wore made up for it. Smart, sexy Buzz. Vic was sure the kids wouldn’t mind the minor absences of the details.
“You two look amazing!” Carrie called out from behind their table. The whole thing looked amazing set up. Rachel was pouring a bag of candy into one of the basic plastic pumpkin bowls. Two others, Eli and Olivia if Vic remembered correctly, were setting the pumpkins into the kiddie pool. “Oh my gosh, we need a group photo.”
Carrie was wearing the Bo Peep outfit, a light blue pant suit with her blonde hair styled and a large, pink bow holding it back. She had on matching flats and the purple cape to pull it all together. Rachel was wearing the Jessie costume. She had the hat and boots, with the vest and everything. Even wearing a red wig that was braided down her back and secured with a ribbon.
“You both look fantastic as well,” Vic said. “What can we do to help?”
“Everything is mostly set up,” Carrie said. “We have extra bags of candy stored under the table. And it’s been announced that the guests will be able to vote for their favorite table or costumes and that club will win a two hundred dollar gift certificate and a pizza party. So, make sure you really play up your characters tonight.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Vic saluted her. She just laughed.
But playing the characters they did. It took Tawson a couple of interactions to come out of whatever shell he was in. In theback of their mind, Vic wondered if Halloween was a touchy subject. Tawson talked about what happened to him, but never saidwhenit happened. With that realization, Vic made a promise to themselves to give their partner better memories to remember.
Partner. The thought alone put a dopey grin on Vic’s face.
Vic took a lot of pictures too. For themselves or with the kids that stopped at their table. The kids usually asked for Woody and Buzz, which meant that Vic got to stand close to Tawson time and time again. Vic helped some of the kids with the little fishing poles, cheating with some and letting them just pick one or two with their hands. They did their best to not splash the water, but the Woody costume still ended up with small wet spots mostly on their legs.
It was about two hours into the event when a little boy practically screamed and glued himself to Tawson’s leg. A frantic parent came running up after him, apologizing. “No, no. It’s all good,” Tawson reassured. His attention turned to the little boy. He couldn’t have been more than four.
“Buzz! Buzz!” The little boy danced around, all gapped toothed smile. He was also wearing a Buzz costume.
Tawson smiled and bent down to be on the same level as the little boy. “You’re Buzz too.”
“Yes!” The little boy was so excited his whole body was wiggling.
“He is absolutely obsessed with all things Toy Story,” the lady, presumably Mom, said. “It’s on a constant loop in the house. My older boy can quote it word-for-word and he passed that love to his little brother.”
“Well, we should definitely get a picture with all of us, then.” Rachel stood from her chair behind the table. Carrie did thesame. They introduced themselves to the little boy, giving him way more candy than any little kid his age needed. “What’s his name?”
“Micah,” the mom said.
