Past The Patch

didn’t know he’d been holding when he saw the Subaru pull into the drive way.

Alex pulled the grocery bags out of the hatchback and walked towards the two-bedroom-one-bathroom ranch house she shared with her husband of two years, Tim. Timothy met her half ways and grabbed more than half of the grocery bags and carried them inside. “What took so long? It’s almost time.”

“Well, hello to you, too,” Alex began putting away the cold groceries.

“I made it in plenty of time. Besides, I got stuck behind an old lady in the checkout line,” she offered.

“Well, that’s just great. I’m sure the neighbors would understand that.

‘Well, I’m sorry you were eaten by my husband, but I got stuck in line at the grocery store. If only it weren’t for that old lady, I would have made it on time. But I just had to get....”Timothy pulled an item from the nearest grocery bag. “‘ I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter”. Yes, don’t you just love Fabio? Sorry about your dog. Fido was my husband’s appetizer when he turned into a were...’”

Alex cut him off by jingling the car keys inches from his face. “Just go now, or you’ll be the one making excuses.” She smiled at him, but her eyes betrayed her weariness.

“Right, dear.” Timothy grabbed the keys in his left hand and kissed Alex on the cheek. He pulled back and looked at his wife. “You’re amazing, you know that?”

She swatted him on the behind as he went out the door. No sooner had the door closed than it opened again and Tim poked his head in. “Lock the door,” he said, “there’s a bad moon on the rise.” He wiggled his eyebrows and pulled the door shut behind him. Alex heard the motor starting as she turned the deadbolt and then turned back to the groceries. She paused in her task to turn on the lights in the kitchen and living room, and then walked back to the master bedroom and turned those lights on as well. She flipped the television on to the evening news and resumed putting away the groceries.

Alex looked out the kitchen window at the moon. She pursed her lips together and turned to heat up the kettle for tea. Her body froze rigid when she heard a noise from the front of the house. She grabbed the biggest thing she could see at the moment, a large metal spatula, and tiptoed to check it out. The floorboards creaked as Alex approached the area she thought the noise had come from. She froze again. She felt a slight breeze. The front window was open a crack and the blinds were banging against the pane.

Alex let out the breath she didn’t know she’d been holding and shut and locked the window. She felt silly when she let out a little scream when the kettle whistled. She admonished herself and went to pour the water on the tea bag in her favorite mug. It was the mug she’d gotten at the ski lodge where she’d first met Tim. She settled on the couch with her cup of tea and watched an old movie, something with Audrey Hepburn. Before she knew it, Tim was kissing her on the cheek to wake her up. His hair was still wet from washing it. That full moon was over. Alex wrapped her arms around Tim’s neck and breathed in his scent, musk mixed with fresh soap.

The next full moon was on Halloween. Alex was actually looking forward to it because people would be out and about, and the neighborhood would be well-lit. The moon would provide extra light for the revelers. She always looked forward to seeing the kids in their costumes, too. Truth be told, Halloween was Alex’s favorite holiday as a child. She remembered her favorite costumes as a little girl: a robot when she was eight, complete with a large-pad calculator on her chest, and a sorceress when she was 10 (she thought that was particularly creative at the time). Alex had already bought candy weeks in advance, and she tucked a Reese's cup now in Tim’s pocket as he walked by.

“I’m thinking more like rabbit tonight, hon, but thanks,” he grinned, showing his white teeth.

“Oh, you’re so clever,” she admonished him, and faked a pout. It had taken a while to get used to the idea of her husband’s “hunting,” but then she thought, it wasn’t really that different than the husbands who went out with their Winchesters and Brownings. Just a little more visceral. She tried not to think about it.

Tim left the room to gather some last minute supplies, then was back in the kitchen with Alex. “Happy Halloween,” said Alex brightly.

“Mmmm,” Tim pursed his lips. “Boo!”

“You don’t scare me,” Alex said.

“Well, would you like tricks or treats when I get home,” Tim sidled up next to Alex.

“Oh, definitely treats,” she said, her voice lower.

“See you then.” With that Tim was out the door and Alex continued her Hallow’s Eve preparations. She lit the candle in the jackolantern outside, even though it wasn’t quite dusk, and flipped on the porch light. Alex had time to make herself a cup of tea before the first trick-or-treaters arrived.

There were a lot of vampires, Alex thought due to the popularity of the Twilight series and those that followed it, and also possibly because of the same, a lot of werewolves. She herself was firmly in the Team Jacob camp. So what if she was biased? Everytime she saw a werewolf that night, though, she couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. If only their parents knew, she thought. Then, it was a good thing they didn’t. She wondered what Tim was doing right now. Then decided she probably didn’t really want to know.

After the fifth werewolf, Tim was firmly in the front of her mind. A part of her wished she was out running in the woods with him. She used to run cross country in high school, but now subsisted on yoga and pilates, and only did those half-heartedly. Oh, she knew it was more of a curse than a gift to Tim, and he wouldn’t wish it on anyone, but sometimes she wondered about the heightened senses, the increased strength and speed and stamina, but then, there was the fur.

After the last trick-or-treater came and left, Alex blew the candle out in the Jack-o-lantern. She crawled into bed with a book, but was too tired to read. Alex slept peacefully, and when she awoke, Tim was spooning her.

She sighed contentedly and rolled over to face him. Tim opened his eyes. He smiled at her, and his breath smelled fresh.

Alex put a hand over her mouth. “I have morning breath!” she exclaimed behind her hand.

Tim laughed and kissed Alex’s hand. “How was Halloween?” he asked.

“I thought of you all night,” she answered honestly.

Tim smiled again and moved Alex’s hand from in front of her mouth.

He kissed her. Alex was the one smiling now. Every couple had their problems, she thought, but theirs really wasn’t so bad.

HOME INVASION

John J. Smith

Writing under two names John J. Smith and pen name Jonathan Black, the dark side of John, he has won several awards under each name and have been called a “prolific Fiction writer.” He enjoy writing romance and mainstream as John and paranormal and paranormal romance as Jonathan. Several of his novels have been converted or rewritten into screenplays; for which he has also have won several awards as well, but the most importantly, enjoys writing in the various genre. (It's the story that's written that decides who the writer is, not the writer choosing the story.) And, at last, he resides in Plano, a suburb of Dallas, Texas, and can often be found loitering at a Starbucks.

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“Don’t you just love New York during Halloween?” Steliana asked, looking over her cup of coffee to her husband.” She glanced across the patio, watching while people dressed in costumes strolled by. “I love watching the kids.”

“Hmm,” Nicolae moaned, as if the mere thought of a child brought warmth to his heart. “But to be honest, Steliana, I love New York because it’s... New York... And, I love home delivery. They just come to the door bringing delightful entrees.”

Steliana laughed, nearly choking on her after-dinner coffee. “Nicolae, I swear sometimes...” She paused for a