Fall all Together (standard:other, 900 words)
Author: Andrew Dayton	Added: Nov 30 2012	Views/Reads: 2947/1904	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Written for a short story contest dealing with the topic of Halloween.

Fall, All Together. 

The young boy stared out the window, waiting for the sun to go down.
“Colin.” His father's voice broke into his reverie and he turned 
towards the room, where he was lighting a lamp. 

“Yes Papa?” 

“Go on down and get Doc Meering now.” 

Colin nodded.  He looked over to where Mama was sitting in the light of
the lantern, flushed and holding her swollen belly, before heading 
outside into the dusk.  Trotting east down the dusty lane, kicking up 
gravel, he watched bonfires being lit in front of houses along the way. 
 Most of the houses were larger and prettier than his own mean shack.  
Doc's place, at the end of the street was easily the largest of them 
all.  He trotted up to the door and tugged the bell pull and heard it 
ring somewhere deep within the house.  The door opened and a kindly 
looking man with round spectacles greeted him. 

“Hello Colin.” 

“Hello Doc, Papa sent me to fetch you.” 

With no wasted motion, Doc grabbed his medical bag beside the door and
he began walking down the street with long strides; Colin trotting to 
keep up. A breeze had sprung up and swirled dust around them, mixing 
with the smoke of the fires. 

Arriving at the cabin they went inside, Doc Meering immediately going
behind the curtain to Mama and Papa's bedroom. 

Colin stood in the room looking up at the candies cooling above the
warming oven, his mouth beginning to water. Horehound hard candy, 
peppermint and strawberry suckers mounted on toothpicks stood arrayed 
on butcher paper, glittering in the lamplight. These would be given out 
to the trick or treaters who would come to the door as soon as darkness 
fell. Mama took great pride in her cooking and candy making and Colin 
was sure she would win the prize for best treats this year. Last year, 
sitting in the cabin with Papa smoking his pipe in silence they sat 
listening as the older kids gathered in the neighbor's front yard 
singing: 

Gold and red and yellow 

The summer leaves have fallen 

Harvest is in and pantries stocked 

And cold winds soon come calling 

This Halloween we gather here 

To give tribute to your treats so fair 

To sing this song of praise 

To the best sweets anywhere. 

Mama smiled to hide her disappointment and sent Colin off to bed. 

This year was different. Mama told him he would have a brother or sister
and that she didn't much care if she won or not.  “Life don't always 
favor folks like us Colin, but this year is going to be the best of 
all.  Let someone else get the prize, we've got bigger things to attend 
to.” 

But Colin had heard them talking last night before falling asleep. 
Papa's voice rumbled softly from the kitchen “You know Miriam, if you 
did win, it would sure be nice for the boy to start off his first year 
of school thataway.  The kids might not give him such a hard time.”  So 
Mama had worked all day, not pausing to eat dinner, as if she was 
racing against time itself. 

A series of groans worked their way through his consciousness and he


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