The nerves crash back with extreme prejudice once my driver drops me off, as I shuffle out the car and get greeted with a blast of muffled music from the house in front of me.

Autumn hangs heavy in the air, little fragments of twilight on fire as the last remnants of the sunset vanish over the horizon, and the last traces of this morning’s rain clear out. The full moon beams down at me as I shuffle awkwardly by the mailbox.

The street is crowded, and it doesn’t take long for a batch of trick-or-treaters to trot up and take up the whole of the sidewalk, forcing me to pick the driveway or the road.

The road is admittedly tempting, if just for a second.

But no, no, I didn’t pay the fare just to skip out. I’ll sunk cost my way through this if I absolutely have to. I don’t drag my feet, but I still take my time.

The door crashes open before I get there, and a man throws himself at me as the music blares freely into the night.

ROBIN: Hey, you! You decided to come after all!

I squeeze back much more gently, and try to keep my soul from flying out of my body.

DIANA: You invited me, didn’t you?

[He pulls away and waves me in.]