TUESDAY TALES - THE HALLOWEEN PARTY

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Here is my Tuesday Tale for the evil holiday. Be careful what you wish for...you might get it!

THE HALLOWEEN PARTY

Cal Brophy, head of the mailroom at Goodhue, Walker and Bates Advertising, walked into Mr. Goodhue’s office and sat down.

            “Cal, I need your help. I want the best Halloween Party ever. Something new and different. So I’ve come up with a contest.”

            “I can’t imagine…”

            “This year we’ll provide costumes, Cal. And I’m leaving those choices up to you. Everyone will appear in costume and we’ll have a “guess the employee” contest. The person who identifies the biggest number of employees, wins. Of course you won’t be eligible. Here is the name and number of the company supplying the costumes.”

            ‘But Mr. Goodhue…”

            “That’s all, Cal. By the way, you get a bonus for doing this. Have fun.”

            Cal went out into the hall and returned to his office.

            I was going to surprise Cecily in account services…wear the same costume as Derek the account manager who’s lusting after her. Then I could get her in my office and wham! But now?

            Dennis, his assistant, joined him at the elevator on their way to lunch. As the elevator doors were closing, Chastity Daniels came running up. Cal put his hand on the elevator door and stopped it for her.

            “Thanks, Cal.”

            Chastity, one of the art directors, was wearing a dark purple suit with a scoop-neck aqua shell that showed off her large bosom. Dennis stared at her in appreciation though Cal ignored her shiny light blonde hair and slender legs. He only had eyes for Cecily. Chastity wasn’t pretty by fashion magazine standards. Her nose was a little too big and her blue eyes were a little too small, but she dressed nicely, had a good figure and had been admiring Cal for months.

            Dennis leered at Chastity and she managed a small polite smile in return.

            “What’s new, Cal?” she asked.

            “Working on the Halloween party,” he mumbled, lost in thought.

            Cal spent the entire afternoon working on the problem, then he got it. After shutting himself away for the afternoon, he came out beaming and walked to Mr. Goodhue’s office on his way home. He stuck his head in, made a thumbs up sign and went to the elevator. Again he bumped into Chastity Daniels.

            “Such a big smile. You must have had a good day.”

            “Wait until the party. You…and everyone else…are going to be surprised…totally surprised.”

            “Now I’m looking forward to it, Cal.”

            “You have no idea,” he said as he walked out the front door and headed to the subway home.

**** 

            The day of the party arrived and everyone was buzzing about it. No one had been able to pry the information from Cal as to who got which costumes. Cal sported a Cheshire Cat grin all week before the party but didn’t confide in anyone, including Dennis, his closest confident.

            At four o’clock on Friday, Mr. Goodhue made the announcement over the interoffice loud speaker that the workday was done and everyone was to put on their costumes and come to the large conference room for the party.

            Office doors slammed shut as people ripped open their costume boxes and changed their clothes.

            “Batman! I hope Cecily is Cat Woman,” Derek to Sam, who returned to his own office to don his costume.

            At five p.m., the doors opened and the hallways filled with…batmen and catwomen! All the men were dressed at Batman and all the women at Catwoman! When everyone filed into the conference room, Mr. Goodhue cheered!

            “Brilliant, Cal! Now this will be a real contest!”

            While Goodhue and his assistant, Stacey, got people lined up with pens and scorecards for the contest, Cal sought out Cecily. He doctored her costume with a red circle glued to the back on one ear so only he would know which one was Cecily.

            Beer and wine flowed and hors d’oeuvres were served. Cal finally spotted her taking a glass of wine.

            Good. Drink up. Tonight you’re mine, baby.

            Cal had often imitated Derek to amuse Dennis as they sorted the mail. Now he cleared his throat and approached Cecily.

            “Cecily, you’re hot in that,” Cal said, sounding like Derek.

            “Derek?”

            “None other.”

            “God, you look like everyone else,” she moaned.

            “Come with me and I’ll show you how I’m not like everyone else,” he said, taking her hand and leading her into the mailroom. He closed the door and pulled down the shade.

            “Why are we in here?”

            “No one will find us here.”

            “This is that little twerp’s office isn’t it?”

            “Who?”

            “That little asshole, Cal whatever, isn’t it?”

            “Asshole? I thought you liked him?”

            “Who could like him. He’s stupid, obnoxious and funny looking, ugly, actually. Notice no mirrors in here. He’d probably break the glass with his big nose,” she said and began to giggle.

            “But you call him…”

            “Sure, sure. I call him ‘honey’. I call everyone ‘honey’, except you Derek. You I call stud,” she said, kissing Cal.

            “Why?”

            “Never know when I’m going to need him, ya know? He handles the mail and always gets my packages out first. I think he wants to screw me. Not in this lifetime. Now you are a different story. How do you get this costume off?”

            As Cecily began to struggle with her costume. She gave up and sidled up to him.

            “Give a girl a hand here,” she said, moving up against him and cupping her hand over his crotch.

            Cal shoved her hand away and turned to leave.

            “Do it yourself,” he said as he pushed through the door.

            “Derek! What’s the matter?”

            Cal began to sweat. He wasn’t sure if it was the costume or his encounter with Cecily. Tears of humiliation formed in his eyes. Cecily, cool, beautiful, tall, stacked Cecily, just the office bitch. He slumped down on a stool in the art department. Blinking back tears, he picked up a can of beer and drank it, not caring whose it was.

            “Treats or trick,” came a small female voice from the corner of the room.

            “It’s trick or treat.”

            “You look like you need a treat…like you’ve already had the trick, Cal.”

            His head shot up.

            “How do you know it’s me?”

    “I can tell by your walk.”

            “Who are you?”

            “Not supposed to tell.”

            “I’m not in the contest.”

            “Chastity here.”

            “Hi,” he said, strolling over to the walls. He looked at the art displayed there. Chastity had won several awards for her designs in direct mail and print advertising. He looked over all the ads, reading the headlines and looking at the colors and layouts.

            “This stuff is pretty good,” Cal said.

            “Thanks. It got me a raise and promotion.”

            He looked at her with new respect.

In the tight-fitting costume she looked sexy. The black outline of the fabric emphasized her rounded figure and her blue eyes looked brighter through the mask. Chastity smiled warmly at him and he saw her for the first time.

            “Do you want to come to dinner with me?” he asked, anxious not to be alone.

            “I’m waiting for someone,” she said, hesitating.

            Dennis walked in still wearing his costume but the helmet rested in his hand instead of on his head.

            “Dennis?” Cal asked, his eyebrows raised.

            At the door, she stopped and turned to Cal.

            “Would you like to join us for dinner?” Chastity asked, holding out her hand to him.

            Cal grinned.

            “Sure,” he said and followed them to the elevator.
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