Natalie leaned over the sink, absently winding an errant blonde lock around her finger, blue eyes mirthful. From the bay window she watched him, trying not to laugh.

JC was in the front yard raking. Or more accurately, attempting to rake. Each time he got a sizeable pile together a gust of wind blew, sending the multi-colored leaves scattering back out across the grass.

Though she couldn’t hear him through the window, particularly not above the howling wind, she could see his lips moving. She was moderately sure most of what was coming out of his mouth were the sorts of words that would be frowned upon in polite company. But still he trudged, dragging the rake in short swipes, gathering leaves together.

She took one more glance out of the window and, still smiling, left the kitchen to walk down the short hallway to the foyer. After slipping into a pair of boots from the knee-high shoe rack against the wall, she opened the front door. An especially brutal blast of wind hit her in the face, bringing tears to her eyes and nearly ripping the door from her grasp.

Holding the door handle a little bit tighter, she reached to the coat rack next to the door and grabbed two thick wool scarves. She wrapped one around her neck and carried the other one with her as she crossed the threshold to the front steps.

Though she wasn’t trying to be quiet as she approached JC from behind, Natalie could tell he had no clue she was there. She crossed the lawn, avoiding most of the crunchiest leaves and stopped half a foot away from him.

"Been awhile since you did your own lawn work, huh?” she called out.

JC’s head whipped up and he whirled around to face her. When he saw her standing there grinning, he smiled sheepishly. “Is it that obvious?”

“Sweetie...” She came up to him and wrapped the other scarf around his neck gently. “You kinda suck.” She patted his chest and kissed him softly on the lips, still smiling.

His eyes narrowed and then she was laughing and he was laughing and he was leaning over, palms on his thighs, trying to catch his breath.

"A little bit, huh?" He inhaled deeply, the acrid smell of nearby burning leaves causing him to cough a bit.

Leaves--in beautiful hues of amber, sienna, and burnt orange--littered the expansive lawn in front of the rambling colonial. A trip they’d made to visit some of his family had led JC to the somewhat impulsive decision to buy the home on the Maryland side of what was often colloquially known as the DMV. Six months after a gut rehab, and he'd then decided that he wanted to have the full experience of seasons changing again--something he mostly missed out on in both Florida and Southern California.

Against Natalie's suggestions--and better judgement--JC had even decided to do the bulk of his own yard work.  

She laughed again. “So, um, I know you wanted this done before trick or treaters start making their rounds...maybe I can give you a hand?”

His smile was bright, blue eyes sparkling, and he nodded. “I think I need all the help I can get. This is harder than I remember.”

They worked steadily for the next couple of hours, raking, piling, and bagging fallen leaves. When the outdoor task was completed they headed inside, just in time to prepare to begin passing out candy to costumed children.

“The little girl dressed as Cruella DeVille,” Natalie laughed later that evening. “With her baby brother as the dalmatian. Totally my favorite of the night!”

JC joined in her laughter. “Yeah, he...was not feeling that costume.”

The boy in question had been about two and although he made an adorable puppy, he clearly wasn’t happy. He came to the front door holding his older sister’s hand, with tears in his big brown eyes. He stopped sniffling enough to get out a soft “tick oh teat” before going back to crying. After Natalie added candy to their matching jack-o-lantern pails--a little extra because they were so darn cute--he tore away from his sister and ran straight back to his parents, waiting a few feet away on the sidewalk.

“Aww, still, they were adorable.”

“Yeah, that’s why you gave them twice as much candy.” He smirked at her. “I liked the crazy cat lady. That was genius!”

The preschooler had been wearing a purple robe with matching purple house shoes. Half of her hair was done up in rollers, and she wore cateye spectacles also in purple. But, in his opinion, the pièce de résistance was the presence of the dozen or so stuffed cats strategically pinned all over the robe.

“Parents certainly seem to have gotten more creative over the years.” Natalie yawned and leaned back into the plush cushions of the couch.

The steady stream of trick or treaters had slowly dwindled down to a light trickle, and it had been almost an hour since the doorbell had rung. They had retreated to the family room, mugs of mulled apple cider cooling on the coffee table in front of them, Edward Scissorhands on the television.

“I think I’m turning in for the night,” she said, reaching up to stretch. She yawned and leaned back against the plush cushions of the luxe sectional.

Her legs were tossed across his lap, and JC squeezed her leg right above her knee, causing her to jump slightly. “Nat, you can’t go to sleep yet.”

"Hey!" she yelped, giggling because she was ticklish. "Why not? I put in a lot of work this afternoon. Not to mention almost two nonstop hours of handing out candy. I'm beat."

"You're boring," he countered, pushing her legs off of his lap. He stood and grabbed her hands, pulling her up too.

“Not boring,” she said with another yawn. “Sleepy.”

He slid his arms around her waist. bringing her closer to him. “Well sorry, but you can’t sleep yet. Halloween isn’t over.”   

“Trick or treating is done; I think it’s safe to say that Halloween is, in fact, over.” Natalie rested her hands on his forearms.

“For the kids, maybe.” He kissed her softly before pulling back to give her a mischievous grin. “Now go upstairs, put on something warm, and meet me out back in ten minutes.”

“JC…” she began plaintively, but he was already walking away from her.

“Ten minutes,” he called with a backward glance and wink.

Although she grumbled a bit under her breath, about the late hour and the chilly fall evening, Natalie was smiling as she walked up the stairs and into their bedroom.

She was already dressed in a warm, button-down flannel shirt and blue jeans, so she grabbed a sweater from his side of the closet. It was her favorite piece of his clothing. The ribbed soft cotton was in a shade of blue that almost perfectly matched his eyes. She pulled it on and halfway zipped the mock turtleneck. After a quick stop in the bathroom, where she pulled her shoulder-length blonde hair up into a messy bun, she was heading back downstairs.

Boots back on her feet and scarf wrapped around her neck, Natalie headed outside through the front door, and around to the back of the house. The night air was crisp, but the wind had died down enough that it was pleasant and not overly cold.

JC stood in the backyard, just beyond the covered porch, a grey blanket folded over his arm, laptop bag slung over his neck, and a picnic basket hanging from one hand.

“Ready?” he asked as she approached him. “Nice sweater, by the way.”

She smiled in response to his smirk. “Thanks. And yeah, I’m ready...but for what, is the question? What’s with all the stuff you have?”

He held out a hand to her. “Grown up Halloween. Shall we?”

With a questioning look, she took his hand and let him guide her to the wood flanking the area behind their home. They walked for a short while, a minute or two, with her asking questions--why were they going into the woods, and what they were going to be doing there, and what was in the basket, and, by the way, why did he have his laptop case--and him deflecting them patiently.

“Here we are,” he said when they came to a circular clearing in the trees.

Her mouth opened into an ‘O’ of surprise as she looked around. “JC…”

He’d clearly been there earlier; a couple of battery operated lanterns illuminated the space. A large hollowed out log lay across one side. After asking Natalie to momentarily hold the picnic basket and a warning (“No peeking, Honey. I’m watching you.”), JC spread out the blanket in front it. He moved the lanterns onto the blanket, followed by the picnic basket and the laptop case, which he removed from around his neck.

“All set,” he said. And for the second time of the night, he held a hand out to her.

She took his hand but before he could pull her down to the blanket, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and tugged him closer. “You’re pretty amazing, you know that?” she whispered. Before he could answer, she brushed her lips across his.

The settled on the blanket side by side, using the log as a sort of backrest. He opened the picnic basket and immediately, the spicy-sweet scent of cinnamon and apples wafted around her. JC handed her a travel mug, and while she sipped on more of the mulled cider from earlier, he set about pulling out plates, napkins, and a covered container. In another moment, he was taking caramel glazed donuts out of it and setting them on the plates.  

“They were warm a little while ago,” he said, “but I don’t know if they still are.”

Once everything was situated, he took the computer out of the case and flipped the lid open. A quick press of the power button brought up the title menu of the already cued up movie. Natalie laughed when she saw it.

“Charlie Brown?” she tittered.  

He blushed a little and chuckled with her. “Yeah, well, you don’t like scary movies--”

“Neither do you,” she pointed out.

“--and this one’s a Halloween classic,” he finished. “Just...shhh.” He picked up one of the donuts and held it toward her mouth.

“Mmm,” she murmured, savoring the sweet confection. “Still warm, too.”

“Good.” He leaned back against the tree and slid his arm around her, pulling her closer to his side. “Happy Halloween, Baby.” He took a bite of the donut still in his other hand.

Natalie rested her head on his shoulder as the movie began to play, a smile of contentment on her lips. Everything was perfect--the heat of him against her, keeping her warm against the night air. The fragrant cider and sugary donuts. Even the cheesy kids’ Halloween movie onscreen.

“Happy Halloween, JC,” she said, her smile widening when he placed another gentle kiss on the top of  her head.