I squinted into the harsh light, blinking rapidly as I adjusted to being awake. I tilted my head and looked at the clock on the wall. Half past five. I looked out of the window at the sky; heavy clouds rolled behind the glass. I must have fallen asleep after lunch. Suddenly, I heard a knock on the door. "Violet?" Lay's voice was muffled through the wood.

"M-hm?" I mumbled. The door clicked and Lay appeared round the side of it, smiling.

"Shall we have some food before we go?" he asked. I frowned, before sitting up as I remembered that it was Friday. "Okay!" I said, rubbing my eyes as I sat up. Lay smiled.

"I'll go and start some dinner," he said, closing he door behind him. I went to the window and opened it. I held my hand out. The wind sent a cruel prickle across my skin, so I shut the window and collected a thick jumper from my wardrobe. I yawned as I pulled it over my head and fixed my hair. As I opened my door, the comforting, spicy smell of Lay's cooking was floating up the stairs. "Just in time," Lay smiled as I trudged into the kitchen, placing a bowl of soup on the table.

"It smells really good!" I said as he joined me at the table. I lifted the spoon to my lips and took a sip. It was delicious. "Oh," Lay said, "while I remember, I got this for you," he said, pulling a large book out from under the table and pushing it to me. I leafed through the tome, and saw it was a book of Aurian to English phrases. I smiled and thanked him.

Once we'd eaten, we grabbed our coats and headed out. Although it was still early, there were children and parents in costumes walking around, smiling and chatting. "So what do they do?" I asked.

"They knock on doors and ask for sweets. It's called trick-or-treat. If they don't get sweets then they play a trick on the homeowner," Lay explained. I nodded. We continued walking down the vaguely familiar streets that Lay had shown me the day before. "New York is a brilliant city, there's so much going on all the time. I've got so much to show you," he said. His eyes were glistening with excitement, reflecting the lights from the buildings. The sky had got a lot darker and the horizon was exploding in a neon fantasy up ahead. "We're going to Times Square," he said, his pace quickening. I jogged to catch him up. On the way to Times Square, we passed yet more costumed children. "Happy Halloween! Would you like some candy?" one little girl dressed as a ladybird asked, holding up a small yellow orb which was encased in clear material. "Thank you," I said, smiling at her. Lay took something out of his pocket and handed it to her. "Happy Halloween!" he said, waving as she and her mother continued walking. Lay turned to me and chuckled. "You have such a strong accent when you speak English," he quipped. I stuck my tongue out at him.

Eventually we came to a vibrant and bustling area, bordered by shops and buildings. Enormous technicolour screens formed an ecstatic ring above our heads, pulsing and shiftingin an array of images and colours. People milled around, taking pictures and laughing and pointing when they saw themselves on one of the screens. "This is Times Square," Lay said. I looked around wide-eyed at the splendour in front of me.

"This is beautiful!" I exclaimed. Lay smiled and motioned for me to follow him. We weaver through the crush of people and navigated various streets before we arrived at a convenience store. The white-lit aisles were decorated with pumpkins and autumn garlands. "You can't celebrate Halloween without some vital ingredients," Lay said, picking up a basket on his way through the door. "Have a look around by yourself while I get everything, okay? If you see anything that you especially want, just pick it up an bring it to me," he said. I nodded and watched him walk away before exploring. All the aisles were decorated, which made for a very atmospheric scene. I looked at all the items available, stopping by a softly lit counter holding various jars. I read the label: 'Active Mineral Skincare'. I frowned at it, trying to understand it. "Nearly everything," I heard as Lay appeared by my side. "Oh, you're looking at makeup," he remarked. "That's not a surprise!" I looked at him, confused. He explained to me what it was. "Do you want some?" he asked, "I don't mine, it's not very expensive." I looked at the range before picking up a jar. "What's this?"

"Moisturiser with Aloe Vera and Almond…it's meant to keep your skin soft and smooth," he replied. My lips curled into a smirk.

"Why do you know so much about this if it's meant to be a girly thing?" I quipped. He laughed.

"That's common knowledge for Earth folk," he replied. "I'll buy it for you, see if you like it," he said, "I've got a couple more things to get, do you want to keep looking around or you can sit outside if you want?"

"I'll meet you outside in a few minutes," I replied. He nodded and I turned to keep exploring. Eventually we met back up and we walked around a bit more before we found a bench to sit on. Lay sat and patted the seat next to him. I sank down and he handed me a small purple bag. "Open it," he nudged my elbow. I opened the bag and reached in. "Halloween candy!" Lay said, watching as I peered at the various shapes and colours of the candies. "These are the most famous, candy corn," Lay said, pointing to some small triangles in yellow, orange and white. I glanced back up at him and couldn't help thinking how…handsome he looked. "Try one," he said, swiftly taking one from my hand and popping it in his mouth with a smirk. I copied. The candy corn was super sweet and almost fudge-like, with a soft but grainy consistency. "Nice?" he asked. I nodded. "Good! Let's explore some more," he said. We finished our candy corn and headed back towards the road. "Look at that house!" I exclaimed, pointing at an elaborately decorated building ahead.

"He does it every year, it's brilliant isn't it?" Lay replied. I nodded enthusiastically. As we got closer, I could see that there were even decorations in the tree. An eerie red light was cast across the garden, which was littered with ghoulish forms in various textures. Suddenly, a large, skeletal figure that hung above the doorway let out a horrific screech. It frightened me and I screamed, clutching Lay's arm tightly. He looked down at my hand and back up at me. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Oh, sorry," I said sheepishly, letting go of him. He smiled.

"It's okay," he replied, "shall we go home? There's probably some Halloween movie on."

"Okay…are they scary?" I asked. He smirked.

"They might be."