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Post by Mackenzie Aldridge on Jan 30, 2018 20:21:40 GMT -5
Chapter One
The first time Mackenzie dresses as a Princess for Halloween, she's five years old. She hasn't picked her own costume ever before, and she wasn't too sure what she wanted to be this year either - but in the end, it's her best friend Alyssa who decides for her. After all, Halloween isn't just Halloween - it's also Alyssa's birthday, and she can't say no when she pleads that they should match. The other girl may be a year younger than her, but she's very convincing when she wants to be - which is pretty much all the time. Not very many people say no to Alyssa, and Kenzie isn't any different.
And even though they won't even get to go trick or treating together, because Mackenzie lives in Pennsylvania, a few hours away from Philadelphia, and Alyssa's family lives in the suburbs of Chicago, she knows she has to do as she was asked, and so when her mom asks her what costume she wants this year, she tells her she wants to dress like Belle from Beauty and the Beast, because she loves reading just like she does, and because Alyssa already claimed Jasmine - who is her favorite because she's sassy and she always gets what she wants. Nobody can argue that that's fitting.
Halloween day comes around, and Mackenzie pulls on her costume. In her kindergarten class, people are excited about the night to come - they want to spend hours trick or treating, and everyone tries to say they will have the most candy. There's even a few arguments that occur, but Kenzie stays out of it all. She knows she'll get to go out tonight and trick or treat with her Mom, her brother and her cousins. But really, candy isn't what she's excited for. She's never really had a sweet tooth, anyway, and she often gives most of it away to her parents because she doesn't like it all that much.
She allows her Mom to drag her a few blocks, though in the end everyone is relieved to be headed home. William is tired, and Kenzie can tell her Mom is too - it probably has to do with the little baby brother that's due in a few weeks' time, because Mommy hasn't had as much energy to show off as she usually does since she told them they would get another sibling, so it doesn't take much convincing for her to decide it's time to head on home. She still has a decent amount of candy in her blue pumpkin bucket, because the neighbors give out full sized chocolate bars and handfuls of candy at a time, so she doesn't mind.
She doesn't take her costume off when she gets home though. Instead, she sits in the living room and patiently waits until her Mom calls her over to the office, where she's sitting in front of the computer. Usually Mackenzie would hop on her knees to see the screen, but there's not much room on her knees anymore, so she stands by the desk instead and tries to make herself a bit taller so her dress will show. The Skype call starts, and it doesn't even take two seconds for Alyssa to start listing off what she got for her birthday today and how many people told her she looked just like Jasmine. Then they talk about what candy they got for as long as their mommies let them, until it's bed time and there's no point in asking for even two more minutes.
They wave goodbye with promises to send each other a picture in their costume, then it's off to bed, and Mackenzie falls asleep in her Belle dress because she misses her best friend, and it makes her feel closer to her.
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Post by Mackenzie Aldridge on Jan 30, 2018 20:23:41 GMT -5
Chapter Two
Mackenzie is eleven, and she's never been quite so excited about Halloween before. She's normally so guarded with her emotions that it's weird to see her so antsy and agitated as Valerie drives the rental car over to their hotel, but then, it's really not much of a shock. This year, Halloween falls on a Saturday, and so Felicia and Nate decided to surprise Alyssa with a weekend trip to Disney World, obviously extending the invitation over to Kenzie. It's gonna be the first time Kenzie sees the Magic Kingdom with its Fall and Halloween decorations, and of course she's looking forward to it - but she's mostly just eager to see her best friend.
They still don't get to see each other very often, save the month they spend together in the Summer and the week and a half the Travers family spends at her house over New Years', but communication is a bit easier now that they don't have to bug their moms to bring up a Skype call. Of course, they're still too young to have an unlimited access to the computer, but an hour a day is better than a few calls a week, and sometimes they prefer chatting on the phone for hours on end. But they've never gotten to spend either of their birthdays together yet, and Mackenzie is hopeful this won't be a one time thing.
They check in to their home resort and she gets ready for the Halloween party in record time. She knows Alyssa will be disappointed if she's not dressed like a princess - and although it's not Kenzie's first choice of Halloween costume, even she has to admit it would be weird not to be dressed like a princess at Disney World - so she asked her mom to make her Belle's dress again - but not the poofy, yellow one this time. She figures the pink one is just as cute, and it still technically counts as a princess, so she doesn't think Alyssa will be upset.
She doesn't get to see the other girl until they arrive at the park and get their Halloween party wristbands put on. Then they head in, and Alyssa is standing in from of Town Hall Theater with her parents, dressed in Jasmine's purple outfit - which is actually the first thing Kenzie sees, and she knows that's gotta be her best friend. She runs over to her and they hug for almost a whole minute before the other girl starts talking excitedly about the evening and how much candy they're gonna get, and all the princesses they're gonna meet. Alyssa's always been more expressive than Mackenzie, but her energy level is easy to match on a night like this.
They spend the next hours walking through the Magic Kingdom. It's crowded, of course, but it's nothing new to them, well seasoned Summer travelers that they are. They jump up to participate in the dance party before the parade, and when time comes around for the fireworks, they sit on the same chair, an arm wrapped around each other, because they really do miss each other a lot when they're apart. But tonight is magical, and they each have two bags filled to the brim with candy by the time they're ready to call it quits. It's just about midnight, and with heavy eyelids and dragging feet, they agree to one last picture in front of the castle before they leave.
And when Mackenzie puts the picture in her photo album once she gets back home, she labels it as the best Halloween ever.
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Post by Mackenzie Aldridge on Jan 30, 2018 20:24:02 GMT -5
Chapter Three
Mackenzie is seventeen, and she agrees to missing a couple of days of school so she can attend Alyssa's Halloween party - which doubles up as her sweet sixteen. Kenzie knows that the theme isn't so much that her best friend loves Halloween, but it gives her an excuse to dress up. It doesn't take much to convince her parents to let her take a plane to Chicago for the long weekend. As it is, she's so responsible that she wouldn't miss a single class if it weren't for Alyssa, and they know that, so seeing as she's got perfect grades in all the subjects, they tell her to go ahead and have fun. She still makes arrangements for classmates to take notes for her though.
As far as costumes go, Alyssa's instructions were clear, so she packs up her Belle dress - the blue one this time, because that's what she feels most comfortable with, and although she knows her best friend will probably accuse her of cheating, she'd rather not go among a crowd of strangers in something that makes her feel awkward. Besides, she has no doubt her costume might get her compliments, as her mom's sewing skills are as good as ever - Kenzie knows she made Alyssa's costume as well, but she mailed it out before she had a chance to see it. It's easy to guess which princess she'll go for though, so she doesn't spend too much time thinking on it.
When she arrives in O'Hare, she gets off the plane as fast as she can, dragging by her carry on. She packed it to the brim, but it's worth is as she bypasses luggage claim and goes straight to her best friend to give her a tight hug. Her Aunt Felicia is there to pick her up with Alyssa, which is unusual as she prefers not driving around the airport, but Mackenzie figures Uncle Nate is probably pretty busy cooking everything for his daughter's birthday party. Because there's really no point in hiring bad catering when your dad is a chef, and so Alyssa always has a few specific requests for her father when her birthday comes around.
They arrive at the house, and there's only just time to get changed before guests will start arriving. Kenzie changes in the guest room and when she comes out, Alyssa is already standing out in the hall in her costume. She guessed right, too - she is dressed as Jasmine, as usual. She went for the red outfit this time, and looking her over, Mackenzie feels a bit funny. She's been getting that feeling a lot these past couple of years, only ever with Alyssa, but she brushes it aside, because she'd rather not dwell on it. Instead, she tells her she looks great, and offers to help with her hair, even though any type of closeness to her best friend is starting to get a bit tricky.
As it turns out, it's not Mackenzie's favorite Halloween ever. People start arriving, and Alyssa has always been a popular girl, so there's a lot of them. She falls a bit to the background during the evening, from her own decision - she doesn't like social situations, and to be completely honest, she's not sure how well she wants to get to know the boy who keeps trying to grope her best friend's ass while they're kissing. It's not all bad though - there's great food, pineapple upside down cake and tons of candy, and Alyssa comes by once in a while to force her to dance or get her to talk with one friend or another. Still, she's definitely relieved once the evening comes to an end and everybody else heads out, because time alone with her best friend is what she likes the most.
They change into pajamas and absent mindedly grab at left over candy while they lay on Alyssa's bed and talk about everything and anything they want to, and the late evening chat really redeems this whole Halloween thing for Kenzie. They fall asleep only a couple of hours before the sun comes up.
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Post by Mackenzie Aldridge on Jan 30, 2018 20:24:28 GMT -5
Chapter Four
Sheepish is weak a word as Mackenzie comes home a few minutes past midnight. She knows she missed the celebrations - as usual, a mix of Halloween and Alyssa's birthday. But she got held up at work by a major emergency, and she really couldn't get out of it any earlier than this. Not that that'll be of any help to get her girlfriend to forgive her, of course, but she's hoping the offerings she brings with her might do the trick. It's not that she thinks Alyssa can be bought exactly, but the other girl has always appreciated presents, and it's the best way Kenzie knows how to soften her up a little.
She walks past the empty bowl of candy set by the door - clearly, trick or treaters showed up if she didn't - and over to the living room, where Alyssa is sitting on the couch. She looks less than pleased, sitting straight, her forefingers idly tapping against the plastic tiara she holds in her hands. It's the tiara Kenzie bought for her at Disney when they got too old to wear princess costumes around the parks. It's Jasmine's, of course. And with one quick glance over to the coffee table, she notices her own Belle crown, which she assumes Alyssa took out. The sight of it makes her wince a little.
She puts the box she's holding down next to the tiara and takes a seat on the couch. Alyssa turns to look at her, and although business mode Mackenzie can move mountains and take down opponents without a single hesitation, it takes her a bit more effort not to shrink down a bit. There's definitely anger and annoyance in her eyes, but also disappointment, and that's what stings the most, because although it's not that unusual for Alyssa's temper to flare, Mackenzie always does what she can to keep her happy with their relationship, and right now she can tell she failed. Big time.
So she apologizes, because she knows the reasons and excuses don't matter. She'd taken the day off today, even, but when she got a call at eight this morning, telling her she had to come in and work her magic or else the company's future might just be at stake, she hadn't had much of a choice. Being second in charge to her Dad at twenty five is something to be proud of - though not unexpected, seeing as she'd managed to get her Bachelor and Masters of Business in four and a half years rather than six - but it does come with major responsibilities. And if she's ready to take it all on, it doesn't mean she's happy with herself when it means letting down the girl she loves on a day that matters to her.
She does what she knows best. She lets Alyssa berates her a little, and she doesn't try to justify herself too much - just enough to make her see that she would have rather been here than anywhere else. She asks for forgiveness many times, and she presents her with a couple of things she thought might make things a bit better. The bigger box contains a pineapple upside down cake - one she had Alyssa's father make over in Chicago this morning, before paying someone to drive it all the way to Pennsylvania before the night was over, because she knows any bakery cake wouldn't compare to Uncle Nate's for her girlfriend. And the envelope holds two tickets for a weekend to Paris, because that's the best way she can guarantee her that they'll have time just the two of them together, and if they do that, why not do it in what claims to be the most romantic city on earth?
It takes a bit more coaxing and heartfelt apologies, but ultimately Alyssa tells her that she'll let it slide so long as next Halloween not be the same, and forgives her with a candy flavored kiss.
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Post by Mackenzie Aldridge on Jan 30, 2018 20:24:52 GMT -5
Chapter Five
Mackenzie is thirty, and she is not dressed like a princess for Halloween. She probably wouldn't have even dressed up at all if it'd been up to her - she feels like she's way past the age of putting on store bought costumes, and by now she's pretty sure her mom's time is better spent elsewhere than making Halloween outfits for her grown daughter. Her wife insists though, and Kenzie hasn't been able to say no to Alyssa since the age of three, so she does some last minute shopping and thankfully manages to find something that'll appease the other girl and not make her look like a complete fool.
Their house is well decorated for the holiday, because neither of them is the type to do anything halfway. There are gravestones across the front yard, and lit pumpkins lining the driveway. A cute inflatable ghost and black cat greets people by the door, with orange lights dragging across the edge of the roof, and Mackenzie might just have gone a bit overboard with the fake cobwebs. Which, she also knows that the ten bags of candy she bought to hand out weren't strictly necessary either, but she figures worse comes to worse, the last few trick or treaters they get will have a nice surprise.
She's never taken quite so much care to prepare for Halloween as she has this year. Though it's not that she doesn't enjoy the holiday in itself, because she actually really does. A lot more now than she did as a child, too. Her appreciation for it grew through the years, bringing lasting memories with it. And if she's still not much of a candy eater or a costume wearer, she gets a bit nostalgic when Fall rolls around with its chilly, fragrant winds and its brightly colored leaves. She thinks back on the many Halloweens she experienced, the great ones, and the not so fun ones, and it's not hard to see why it now takes such an important place in her heart.
This year is different though. Of course, she's not that old yet - she has many things left to experience in life, and the older she gets the more she realizes she has to cherish even the small things, because they're the things that sometimes leave the best impressions in her mind. Skyping with Alyssa to show off their costumes. Walking down Main Street U.S.A. with decorations all over the place and Cast Members calling them princesses around every corner. Laughing and sharing secrets and falling asleep together in the middle of the night, because they had so much to tell each other that they didn't want to stop talking. And even Halloweens that brought forth strife, because they powered through it like with everything else they did.
But now, the memories are not just for them anymore. Of course, there will be plenty to come that she will want burned in her mind as well, but there's a new precious girl who she wants to see the world filled with as much happiness and wonder as she can give. And it doesn't matter that their daughter is already asleep in her tiny costume that grandma made her, because after all she's only six months old and she can't really be expected to remember any of this. But it's her first Halloween, so there will be pictures to remember it by, and she looks adorable in her tiny Pocahontas dress.
Because there just comes a moment in life when it's time for new traditions.
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