Chapter 5

Carmen

“For a race so terrified of death, you certainly love to celebrate it,” Arccoo said as he held out a long string of little ghosts. He inspected the small decorations closely, raising an interested eyebrow. “And you believe your bodies turn into these things when you die?”

Sofia laughed, shaking her head as she took the garland from him. “Some cultures believe we have a soul, or mystic energy, in our bodies that’s released when we die. This is a very goofy representation of that. It’s simplistic on purpose.”

Carmen nodded from her place sitting on the couch. In her lap sat a notebook full of tried-and-true party recipes, new ideas, and classic spooky treats. She went through it with a highlighter, trying to build the perfect menu for their big party.

“ Some cultures believe, Sofia? Wasn’t very long ago you placed yourself among their ranks.” Carmen sighed as she crossed “artichoke dip” off her list. After that one Easter disaster, she didn’t think anyone could stomach a repeat. Even if the thought did fill her with a good amount of terror, somewhat appropriate for Halloween.

Sofia stood on a chair, balanced by Arccoo, and peeked behind her shoulder back at Carmen. “Rub it in, why don’t you?” she said playfully before turning back to hang up the garland.

“I’m just saying. It’s not too late to pick the paranormal investigating back up.” Carmen sighed and crossed off “mummy pigs in a blanket” for being too juvenile. But then, after a moment of thought, she reconsidered how easy to cook and delicious they were and wrote them back in.

“Well, I guess if we have proof that aliens exist, looking for proof that ghosts are real can’t be that crazy.” Sofia held out her hand to Arccoo, who took it and helped her step back down.

Carmen watched from the couch, feeling a blush of heat rush to her cheeks. He was so gentle in spite of his size. The way he showed such care to her and her sisters was remarkable. It was simply one of several reasons she was finding herself drawn further into him.

His gentleness was also one of the few not so shallow reasons she couldn’t keep her eyes off him.

The front door flew open, jolting Carmen out of the daydream threatening to take her over. Elena stormed in with a cardboard box held in her arms. She dropped it unceremoniously on the ground, a loud sound of crashing metal making everyone jump.

“Elena! What the hell?” Carmen asked as she jumped from the couch.

“Augh, I’m just so over this!” Elena kicked the box, sending a power cable over one of the sides. “I’ve been trying to make this homebrew hologram program work all day, and I don’t know why it won’t!”

Carmen shook her head, crossing her arms in her usual big sister stance. “Is that what you’ve been doing all day? You were supposed to be hanging up the fliers!”

Elena pushed her glasses up her nose in defiance. “I did! I hung them up this morning in all the important places. ‘Big Halloween Party at Wildridge Manor! 8 p.m., October 28th. Costume contest with prizes.’ Everyone’s going to see them, don’t worry. But I’m worried that those people will show up expecting an all- out haunted terror fest and leave disappointed because I can’t. Even. Make. A. Fake. Ghost!” Elena punctuated each word in the final sentence by giving the equipment box another kick.

Arccoo glided over to them before leaning down and inspecting the box’s contents. He held each piece close to his face, as if trying to discern what each component was for.

“You were trying to create holo tech using this?” he finally asked Elena.

Her face went red with embarrassment. “I mean, probably not like anything your species can pull off. It was just some basic little trick. Just an image of a ghost swaying back and forth.”

“Don’t sell yourself short,” Sofia commanded, pointing a finger in her little sister’s face. “If it could be done with human tech, you’d pull it off easily.”

Elena smiled sheepishly but looked back at Arccoo with wide, expectant eyes. He hummed to himself, pulling the projector box open.

“What’s up, Arccoo?” Carmen asked. She stopped herself from reaching out to touch his arm and only then realized she was standing a little too close to him to avoid suspicion. Casually, she stepped closer to Elena under the guise of offering her comfort.

“With a few adjustments, you might be able to make this work. I suppose the light source wasn’t bright enough?” he asked.

Elena sighed. “Bingo. I was tinkering with it in the shed. Even in pitch black, it looks too weak. In a well-lit party, it won’t even be worth the electricity to turn it on.”

Again, Arccoo dug around in the electronics. Carmen couldn’t help but smile at the sight. He looked so serious while investigating the problem. She wondered if he always tackled issues like this, fully engrossed in the mission.

The mission.

For a fleeting moment, Carmen recalled why Arccoo was here in the first place. What would he do when his rescue party arrived? Leave them behind without a second glance? Or…

She shook her head, leaving that thought to be dealt with later. Right now, her sisters needed her at her best.

Halloween was serious business in Hollowbrook. If they were going to impress the people of this town, this party had to be perfect. No cheap plastic spiders and rushed jack-o-lanterns here. Oh, no. Everything had to be authentically, perfectly spooky down to the last detail.

Elena was right to try and add a little extra tech to the mix. Even if Carmen was sure she only dropped one flier off at the local cafe before rushing off to tinker in the shed.

“I may be able to do something with this,” Arccoo said.

Elena’s face brightened up immediately.

“If that’s all right,” he finished. “I wouldn’t want to overstep.”

“Of course not!” Elena said, bursting with excitement. “So like, adding alien tech? Stuff from your ship?”

“Something like that. Although, it would help if you could explain a bit more about your Halloween traditions. Is it only about celebrating death?”

Now it was Sofia’s turn to brighten up.

“You’ll want to talk to her about all that,” Elena replied as she took Sofia by the shoulders and pushed her forward. “Just call me if you want help with any soldering.”

Carmen smiled at her younger sisters. The way they supported each other’s interests always gave her a strong sense of pride. Sure, they’d had their sibling squabbles over the years. But in the end, they always knew they could rely on each other.

“So it’s not just about death, though that is the biggest part of it. It’s about everything that’s scary,” Sofia said. Her eyes sparkled the way they always did when she was truly excited about the topic of discussion. “Werewolves, witches, bats, all of it.”

“Bats?” Arccoo asked.

“Oh, especially bats!”

Carmen gave her sister a pat on the shoulder and turned her attention back to the matter of decorating. She was pretty sure she had the final menu hammered down. Now it was time to pick up an actual hammer and get to work.

After a short while spent hanging some especially creepy portraits and adorning them with fake spider webs, Carmen’s interest was turned back to her sister’s lecture on Halloween history.

“So, your children are allowed to travel from home to home and demand tribute?” Arccoo smiled widely, as if something about their culture finally clicked with his own.

“I guess you could describe it that way,” Sofia said with a laugh. “The whole trick part isn’t exactly a real threat, but some older kids might throw eggs at your windows if they’re feeling especially bratty. Oh! And costumes. They absolutely must wear costumes. Everyone does on Halloween.”

“It’s true. I’m going to be the vampire queen,” Carmen said in an over-the-top Dracula-tinged accent. She had a tight velvet dress, fake fangs, and cape all ready.

“And I’m going to be the amazing Houdini, rabbit included,” Sofia said proudly.

“Hey wait a minute. Now that you mention it, doesn’t Arccoo need a costume?” Elena asked.

Carmen bit her lip. To most humans, Arccoo was already wearing a “costume.” She wondered if any other guests would come dressed as an alien. She hoped Arccoo wouldn’t be offended.

“Do I need one?” he asked. “I assumed I would simply remain invisible during your gathering.”

“What? No way!” Elena cried. “You’re helping out. You should get to party hard, too.”

“Oh my god, wait, what if he wore, like, an astronaut costume?” Sofia asked.

Carmen gasped. “Sofia, that’s perfect!” She could picture it easily. A gray skinned alien found an astronaut’s suit and wore it back down to Earth. It was too funny not to try!

“I’ll happily wear whatever you suggest,” Arccoo said simply.

Again, Carmen found herself flushing with thoughts she wouldn’t exactly describe as chaste. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to subdue the urges brewing in her chest. Finally, she accepted this fight was a losing battle.

“Arccoo, could you help me with something in the kitchen real quick?” Carmen asked. He nodded in agreement. “You’re doing a great job, girls. Keep it up.”

Carmen walked down the hall to the kitchen, resisting the urge to grab Arccoo by the arm and rush him inside faster. Once they were both standing on the linoleum floor, the door shut behind her. Arccoo grabbed her by the arms first and pulled her into him.

She smiled as their lips met. Knowing he was on the exact same page as her made her heart sing.

Arccoo’s arms slid around her waist, drawing her as close to his body as possible. She flung her arms around his shoulders and stood on her toes, giving herself over fully. As her lips parted, his tongue slid in to meet her own.

Carmen considered how easy this felt, how right. Despite being so different in so many strange ways, the truth was that they fit together perfectly.

His hands gripped her ass and then trailed up her back, tracing over her curves. He sighed against her lips. The sound made her quiver with desperate need. Her hands moved across his hard muscles, delighting in their girth under her touch.

Maybe, just maybe, if they could be quick about it, then they could…

“Hey! Did you hear me, Carmen? I said I need Arccoo back in the living room!”

The two of them pulled apart instantly, making plenty of space before the kitchen door opened.

“Yeah, yeah. I heard you, Sofia,” Carmen said quickly before shaking her hand at the cabinet above the fridge. “It’s right up there. The punch bowl. If you could just get it down.”

Arccoo did so and set the bowl down on the table. He looked back at Carmen longingly before following Sofia through the door, seemingly with great reluctance.

Carmen sighed and, once they were gone, collapsed against the countertop. What had she gotten herself into? Even if the two of them agreed wholeheartedly that they were a perfect match, that didn’t mean anyone else would. What if her sisters judged her? What if Arccoo’s people really didn’t like it?

She gulped, not exactly looking forward to starring in alien Romeo and Juliet. And, once again, all of this worrying was predicated on the idea that he wouldn’t simply ditch them the moment his rescue squad arrived.

Carmen shook herself out and regained her composure. This situation had many unknowns and what ifs, sure. But it also had a lot of fun and passion. Arccoo made Carmen feel good about herself in a way she hadn’t since three boyfriends back.

Maybe that’s all they needed to be. A little bit of fun for now.

She sighed, trying to make that thought a happy one. Then, as she always had before, Carmen rolled up her sleeves and got back to work.

After taking inventory of the liquor and serving dishes, she returned to the living room to find a lot more candlesticks filling the room.

“Nice. Very spooky,” she said. “Let me make sure our insurance covers fire damage, though.”

“Oh! Arccoo, tell Carmen your amazing idea!” Elena cried. “Listen, listen, Carmen. He gets it!”

Carmen looked at Arccoo expectantly. He smiled back.

“If the point of the celebration is to prank and scare others, what if I used my cloaking device to cause a little mischief during the party?” he asked.

Carmen gasped, a whirlwind of devilish scenarios jumping through her mind. “You could blow out candles and make things move in the air!”

“He could pick people up and make them look like they’re flying!” Elena said.

“Play the piano!” Sofia yelped, pointing toward the dust covered instrument in the corner. “It doesn’t even have to be good. It’ll be scary no matter what.”

Carmen nodded, smiling widely. “This is genius. Girls, our party is going to rock this town completely!”

They cheered, surrounded by animatronic skeletons and hissing black cats. No way could anyone top what they had brewing.

“All right,” Carmen said, clapping her hands together. “Let’s get to carving some pumpkins. I’ve got a lot of seeds to roast before Saturday night.”

She looked over at Arccoo, who seemed to be equally delighting in the spirit of the season. Even if this couldn’t last forever, Carmen was more than happy that she could have him for now.