Once On Halloween {Ray Grunwald} (mf inc) Heavy feet crashed up the wooden steps and shattered the calm of the kitchen. The door flew open and Lynn and her mother stared as a Dachshund, tiny legs struggling to keep belly above ground, wiggled in panic into the kitchen. "Oh, Spooky!" Lynn said as she swept him into her arms. "Where have you been?" "Hiding. Under a bush by the back fence." Jay stepped into the kitchen and the screen door slammed shut. "Hiding?" she asked. "From the neighbor's cat." "Oh, he was not!" Lynn answered vehemently. "Oh, big old 'Pooky, you aren't scared of wittle kitties, are you?" She made baby noises at Spooky for awhile before looking back up at Jay. "You're always making stuff up," she said. He looked quickly over at his mother. Lynn sounded innocent enough but she still made him nervous. "You two are a pair," he said trying to make her feel stupid. He leaned his spare frame against the wall and frowned at Lynn. She might be as slim and lean as he was, but they were two different people. She was such a mouse. He shook his head, no, she couldn't know anything, not much anyway. She's just being annoying in that whiny way of hers. He'd fix that, sooner or later. His mother slid the last of the clean dishes into the cupboard and turned towards Jay. She waited. He watched Lynn and the dog for a moment, fiddled with his hair, looked around the room. Finally, he met his mother's eyes. "Hi mom," he said. He looked at the single plate that remained on the dinner table. "Smells good in here. Chicken?" His mother tilted her head to the side but remained silent. "Sorry I'm late but I don't have any time for eating. Gotta get ready for tonight." His mother turned back to her dishes. Jay pushed himself off of the wall. He paused before leaving the kitchen and looked back at Lynn. "Hey, what's the mouse up to tonight. Another night sitting around, I suppose?" Lynn frowned at the name but kept her head down and watched Spooky wiggle in her lap. "No, I'll be alright," she answered in a soft voice. "Yeah, right," Jay said. "Tell you what, you can come with me it's an open party, not everyone will have costume. Only you've got to hurry. I'm running late already." "I'm going to a party," Lynn said shyly. "What?" "I'm going to a party of my own," Lynn said louder. She dropped her eyes away from Jay and dipped her head to kiss Spooky. Dark, blonde hair spilled over and hid her face from Jay. "I don't believe it. Got a costume?" "Yeah." Lynn's answer sounded like a question. "Cool," Jay said as he turned to leave the kitchen. "Put it on. I want to see it before I leave." "Jay!" His mother stopped him before he left the kitchen. "I saved your supper." I don't have time," Jay complained. "Eat or not. I don't care. But get rid of it and then wash and dry your dishes. The rest are already finished." Jay glowered at his mother from beneath his eye brows but walked back into the kitchen. "What's your costume?" Lynn asked. Her voice made Jay think of a mouse again and he answered roughly, "Model yours for me and I'll tell you." Lynn frowned but stayed silent. She picked Spooky up and started to leave the kitchen but stopped. She looked at Jay for a few seconds but her eyes showed nothing of what she was thinking. "What were you doing back by the fence?" she asked. Jay automatically felt for the cigarettes stashed in his back pocket as she turned and left. Somehow, she managed to know more than was good for her and he wondered how much she shared with their mother. He glanced at his mother's back but she hadn't seemed to notice. "Don't be so hard on your sister," she said instead. "She's such a little mouse. She does it to herself. It's not my fault." He stuffed a piece of chicken into his mouth, drained a glass of milk. "And don't call her a mouse. You have no idea how bad that makes her feel." Jay ignored his mother and poked at his chicken. He snapped his head up and listened. "Ah, hell. She's in the shower. She'll be there for hours." "Watch your tongue," his mother said automatically as she left the kitchen. Jay rushed through his dishes and trotted up the stairs. The water was still running in the shower. He carefully tried the knob. Locked, as usual. He moved down the hall, threw a look towards the bathroom door, and disappeared into his sister's bedroom. What was she going to wear as a costume? He looked around. Her room was much neater than his with hardly anything on the floor just the shorts, undies, and bra she had dropped on the way to the shower. He walked around the room, then poked into her closet. Nothing. He turned to leave and saw Lynn standing in the doorway. He froze, then laughed at himself. He was just seeing clothes hanging on the back of her door. Leave it to a sicko like Lynn, he thought, to hang stuff up. He poked at the shiny, black cloth. A witch, he guessed. How appropriate. The shower stopped. His heart pounded and he hurried out the door. Something underneath the black cloth caught his eye and he leaned back around the door. He poked at the cloth. A mask. Cat Women. He shook his head. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad. She might as well be Wonder Women for all the good that would do. He left the room and half-ran down the hall and into his own room. He grinned with excitement as he waited inside his door. The bathroom door opened and he peeked around the edge of his door. "Shit," he said softly. As usual, she was wrapped tightly in her towel. He could count on one hand the number of times he had caught her in her bra and panties. And catching her nude was just a dream. She was watching his door out of the corner of her eyes. Little sneak, he thought. "Done?" he asked as he stepped into the hallway. She nodded, then kept her head bowed as she squirted into her room. Nice legs, though, he thought, really nice. For a sister, anyway. He shucked his shirt and pants and walked towards the bathroom in his underwear. He walked around upstairs in his underwear as much as possible. He liked the way Lynn flinched when he came near her like that. God, what a fraidy-cat. Maybe dressing up as a cat was a good idea for her after all. He shut the door, cranked the shower up, and kicked his underwear into a corner. He stood in front of the mirror to look at himself, then glanced towards the door. He wanted to walk out into the hallway naked and really give her a thrill. He always backed down, though. He looked back at the mirror. It would be easier if he really had something to wow her with. Those porn stars didn't care who saw them. He showered in a rush to keep himself from thinking about jerking off. He might get lucky tonight and needed all the confidence he could muster. Back in his room, he was holding his devil's mask and wondering if he could wear it all night. It was as heavy as a football helmet, Heavy horns stuck out the top and a huge jaw extended out from where a face mask would have been. He tried it on. Not too bad. He took hold of the jaw and tilted the mask up. He could easily drink. Hopefully the guys would come through like they were supposed to. He could already taste the beer. The front door thumped shut. He pulled his mask off and stuck his head into the hallway. His mother's voice drifted up the stairs as she talked on the telephone. That was Lynn going out the front door, he thought. Damn, she must have been in a hurry. He picked his cape up off the floor. He wasn't sure about the cape.. It looked like something Dracula would wear but maybe devils wore this kind of stuff, too. He draped it around his shoulders, fastened the little clips around his neck, then pulled the devil's mask over his head. He stood in front of the mirror and acted like he was eating and drinking. No problem. He would be a total mystery. A lot of people were going to be fooled tonight. He hurried out of the house and caught the bus down the street. He rode all the way to the Wal-Mart stop, crossed the parking lot and headed behind the store. Across the abandoned field sat a large, white farmhouse. His destination. He looked down at the devil's mask he was carrying and headed across the field towards Hell. The wooden steps squeaked just like a real haunted house as Jay climbed onto the porch. He pushed the door open and strutted into the building the way he supposed a top-dog devil would strut. Loud bass beats thumped at his head and voices came out of the dark from everywhere, from nowhere. He tried to guess where Derek would have stashed the beer. The noise played with his head and he looked from side to side, his vision hampered a bit from the mask, like an old bull buffalo checking out the prairie. He stood still and let his eyes adjust. The noise resolved into voices and music. He smelled smoke. Cigarettes and something illegal. The music rattled against his ears, thumped deep into his belly. Underneath the pulsing beat he began to recognize individual laughs, shouts and squeals. The taste of beer rolled across his tongue. First things first, he thought, giving the main room a single glance as he headed towards the kitchen. A wolf dressed in prison stripes appeared in front of him. "Hey, buddy, glad you could make it." Jay jumped, then cursed himself. He was going to have to be careful with his mask. He was a traffic disaster in the making with blind spots everywhere. He looked at Derek a little disappointed that he had been recognized so easily. "And who might you be?" Derek asked him. "Jay son, Jason," he answered, catching himself just before he gave himself away. Derek didn't know! "Jason Anderson. I'm from Reedsville I was told to check you guys out." "No problem. Hey, I'm Derek. You need anything, just get a hold of me." Jay was grinning like a crazy from behind his mask. Derek, his best buddy, had no clue who he was talking to. "We got a cover charge though. Five bucks." He held a coffee can out and Jay dropped money into it. "Enjoy yourself, that covers everything." He started to leave, then turned his head back. "Unless we run out of the good stuff and need to run a collection don't worry, we'll find you," he added with a cackle. The kitchen was another success. Two more buddies who didn't have a clue who he was, brownies stuffed with weed, and, of course, the beer. He was feeling fine. He wandered towards the front room. No sense to push his luck, he would spend as much of the night as possible moving around, never letting anybody get too long of a chance to figure him out, stick to the plan. Jay surveyed the front room from the hallway. He felt dizzy for a moment and looked at his cup. Nearly empty. He had guzzled that one way too fast and was feeling light-headed. And the brownies hadn't even kicked in yet. Slow down, he thought, just a bit. He leaned against the doorjamb and took inventory of the current population. He recognized most of the girls and ruled them out, at least for now. "Excuse, hey?" He was plugging the entrance. As he moved farther into the room, his eye latched upon the back of a lone girl with a nice pair of legs. Long legs that molded into slim hips and a round little bottom. He walked around the edge of the room and the rear view of the girl slowly turned into a profile. Safe behind his mask, he made no effort to hide his grin of approval as a tight little bosom came into view. He tensed. He felt her watching him. His eyes automatically flashed to the side What the hell, he thought, let her know she was being inspected, wasn't that the point? He looked back and finished the inspection. He studied her was slowly and deliberately. She ought to be the one feeling uncomfortable. He slowly let his eyes drift upwards, legs to hips to boobs to face. And looked straight into the eyes of Cat Women. He shut his mouth, glad that nobody could see him standing like an empty headed fool. He drained his beer, then shrugged. Might as well have a little fun with the mouse, he thought, as he turned and headed back to the kitchen. . He returned quickly with a beer in each hand. He found Cat Women standing in the same corner and began a long circle around the room until he could approach her from the rear. His eyes stayed glued to her ass. Tingling zipped through his body as moved closer behind his sister. It's just the beer, he thought, maybe he shouldn't have chugged that second beer in the kitchen. The panty-lines formed hard little ridges around her ass and he wondered how she managed to pack herself into there without hurting herself. He glanced around guiltily. Remembering that the subject was his sister brought him back to Earth. He buried that type of thinking somewhere close to the wasteland of his subconscious. He was just gong to be messing with the mouse. It wasn't like he was trying to hit on his own sister. As he came up upon her shoulder he looked down at her boobs no lines there. Braless. Little Lynn? He was learning a lot. She turned and her eyes studied his mask. This was it. He swallowed, tried to think of something to say. He forced his voice steady and tried to disguise it with a lower, raspy flavor. "Hey, kitten, are you the kind that purrs or the kind with claws?" "Is that supposed to be a pickup line?" She giggled, "It could be the worst ever?" The familiar laugh coming out of that costume took his breath away. "What kind of answer is that? Purr or claws?" he asked. She shrugged, hesitated, glanced around. "I"m not sure. Yet. I guess it depends." "I'm hoping for the purr," Jason said, then added, "I could deal with the claws, though." Lynn glanced quickly up and Jason realized she was nervous as hell. Cat Women or not, she was still little fraidy-cat Lynn. He offered her one of his beers and was surprised when Cat Women accepted. Her lips, just barely visible underneath the mask, tested the beer. Kissable lips, really kissable, and he felt that nagging guilt bother him again. He stared at her lips. With the rest of her face hidden, he looked at them as if for the first time. He wouldn't have noticed before, she being a sister and all, but then he'd hardly expected her body to look like this either. But, no doubt about it, this was Lynn. The thought of sneaking a kiss crossed his mind and he immediately dropped it. Still, it gave him an idea and he let his arm brush against hers. She disappointed him by not jumping away. He got better results when he paraded in front of her in his underwear. They talked nonsense, the little things that he immediately forgot, couldn't remember a minute later. His beer was gone. He pointed at her half full glass. "Finish it, I'll be right back." He came back and her glass was empty. He traded the full one for her empty. Standing next to her, he let his arm brush against the side of her breast. She froze, then pressed back. Then she did one of those female things where she dragged her breast across his arm while acting as if her attention was elsewhere. Jay sipped his beer slowly, keeping pace with Lynn. Their arms and shoulders remained pressed lightly together as the talked. Their hips and legs touched lightly together at times and Jay stopped being surprised at the twinge in his groin. At sometime, perhaps during the last beer, his guilt had given up it's futile nagging. He brought back yet another pair of beers and they talked some more. Her face was flushed red beneath the mask and at times she seemed unsteady against him. Was she being coy or just drunk, he wondered. Probably both. He draped an arm over her shoulder and let hand lay against the outer edge of a breast. It felt soft and naked. She made no move to stop him. He leaned against her, cupped the side of her breast, and felt her hip press firmly against him. She seemed to stumble as she leaned back to drain the last of her beer. Her hip knocked against his groin and his cock jumped like a cobra. He thought again about this being his sister but decided he might as well enjoy it. "Want another beer," he asked. "I think so. Sure. But I've got to pee first," she giggled. "Okay?" "No problem. That way," he pointed. She took his hand. "Follow me. I don't want to lose you." He leaned against the wall as she went into the bathroom. She stopped, leaned back into the hallway. "What about you? Don't guys ever have to pee?" "Sure. So don't waste too much time, okay?" She smiled, then latched onto his hand. "Come in. We girls are used to sharing." The door shut behind him before he had time to think. "Turn around, please," she said. He faced the door, heard some rustling, then the tinkling of pee. Facing her again, he found the Cat Women peering his way. Her one-piece leotard was bunched around her knees. His eyes worked upward, traveling up bare thighs, to the dark pubic hair that disappeared between tightly closed legs. Her pee gave a little spurt, then continued harder before weakening again. Her arms were crossed above a bare belly, hiding her breasts. "I didn't think you were trustworthy," she said. "Hell. Sorry," Jay mumbled and started to turn away. "Oh, lighten up," she said, then giggled. "Damage is done, anyway." She hugged her tits tighter. Jay smiled sheepishly, looked around, not wanting to stare yet needing to catch a glimpse of her boobs. He didn't have much time, he figured. In seconds ,he would be ordered to turn around again while she wiped and put herself together. And then she'd be hidden under that leotard again. His heart did a leap she didn't expect to watch him, did she? He liked the idea, but damn, he'd need a few more beers before he tried that. She raised a finger and beckoned him over. He stared stupidly and remained stationary. "Come here," she said like she was talking to Spooky when he wouldn't behave. Numb, he forced a foot forward, then another. What was she up to? She kept wagging her finger and he kept moving forward. He stopped in front of her knees. Her pee still dribbled into the toilet. He felt too close. "What are you thinking?" she asked sounding scared. "I'd like to sit on your lap and kiss your tits," Jay said, trying to shock her. He felt a moment's satisfaction as she stiffened with surprise. Then a smile showed at the bottom of her mask as she spoke. "Take your mask off and go at it." Jay continued to stare at her tits, then shook his head, no. Lynn was holding her hands in front of her like a school girl waiting for first communion. Slowly, hands still together, she reached forward and slid finger tips inside the folds of Jay's cape. Her hands slowly spread and the cape separated. He felt naked as her eyes focused upon his crotch. He felt it pulse against his jeans and there was nothing he could do about it. He wondered if anything showed down there. Did he care? He wished she hadn't been so delicate, wished her fingers had brushed his crotch, his cock. He tried to bury that thought. "Are you going to pee?" Her whisper, although soft, was harsh and forced. "What do you mean? That's why I'm here, isn't it?" "I'll get you ready." Jay flinched as she reached forward, then stared as she fumbled with the tab of his zipper. She began to pull on the tab and he bent away from her. Her eyebrows raised and he forced himself to hold still. She took the zipper again and continued to pull it the rest of the way down. "Oops," she said. "I think I touched something there." "I noticed." His voice was hoarse, barely audible. He wanted to touch himself, to know exactly what she had felt. Her head cocked to one side. "Hear anything?" "No." His voice sounded stronger. "I'm all done peeing." A single drip sounded loud in the room. "Whoops! Now, I'm all done." She wiggled her hips on the toilet. "I think." He felt like he had been standing in front of her forever but he kept waiting, waiting for something. He watched the tip of her tongue wiggle from side to side across her upper lip. He was distracting himself. He didn't know what to do next. "Your shampoo smells good," he said trying to fill the silence. "It's my brother's." She smiled and shrugged. "I forgot mine and was in a rush." She sniffed. "Smell anything else?" "No." "How about pee?" She spoke soft but quick, her eyes unfocused, not looking at Jay. "Oh. Well, not really. I guess. Maybe, a little." "Gross you out?" "No. I ," he answered quickly before he stopped himself. Musty and sharp, he had been going to say but he didn't know how she would take that. "What? What were you going to add?" "I was just going to say it was new. I've never been this close, like this." She tilted her head sideways and her eyes flicked upward towards his head, then back to his crotch. She reached inside the fly and he couldn't stop his hips from buckling backwards as her fingers brushed against his underwear. "There it is." she said. "The little guy is trapped in there." Jay grit his teeth as she talked about his cock like Spooky was trapped in there instead. She pulled the fly of his underwear apart. His cock jumped and her hands flinched back. "Did you do that?" she asked. He shook his head. "It just reacts." Then he added, lamely, "Your fingers are cold." He was afraid he was going to do something stupid like whine or whimper some awful sound. He held his breath, then slowly released it, trying to keep it quiet and unnoticed. "I got inside, didn't I?" She seemed to find that funny. Her fingers wrapped around his cock. She tugged. She was having trouble getting him out. He was already getting hard and she couldn't get him to poke out of the underwear. He felt unable to do anything. He couldn't help, he should be stopping her, but instead he bent at the waist and tried to make more room. A finger looped around the head and pulled it out of the fly. He popped out and she jumped, her hands snapping back underneath her chin. The release from pressure was a relief yet he missed the touch of her fingers. He looked down at his rod hanging in space. He felt on display and ridiculous but didn't have any solution. She didn't seem to know what to do now that she had him out. Her hands were lightly curled, held slightly raised, like a praying mantis still waiting for her prey. Her tongue had stopped wiggling and her eyes were locked onto his cock.. Against any desire, it started to rise. "Look at it bob," she giggled, then looked up. "Are you doing that?" "Not on purpose." "It's huge." "It really isn't." Despite the surge of pride she had sent his way, he said, "Don't go thinking I'm some kind of miracle." "Well, it is to me. Why is it bobbing like that?" His cock was sticking straight out now, horizontal, and as they watched, it started to curl upwards. Jay's guts were twisting inside him. God, he wanted to grab it, it wasn't made to hang there on it's own. "It wants to be touched," he gasped. "Go ahead," she answered. "No!" "Oh, shy, are we?" She reached a hand forward, pointed a finger. She touched the head of his cock and it jumped. She jumped. And giggled. Jay was afraid that forever more, every time he heard her giggle he would have the picture of her finger and his cock flash in front of him. She became braver and pushed it around, then rubbed her fingers across it. "Look, it's reaching for the sky," she said sounding thrilled with her new toy. She slid her hand beneath it, brushed lightly across the skin. He groaned, a strangled sound of pain. "Did I do something wrong? Are you okay?" "It's fine, it's fine. It's it's just like a bad itch. Or a tickle. Be firm." She apologized, her hands held back nearly underneath her chin. "I'm new at this," she said, sounding like she was ready to cry. "Just hold me." She took him in her fingers, just the tips of her fingers. The pressure was too light, agonizingly light. "Hold it," he said. He grabbed her and stuffed his cock into her palm and wrapped her fingers around the shaft. Her fingers felt dead, then slowly tightened. "Oh yes, oh yes." He started to pant, his breathing was short and rough. He released her hand and slid his fingers across the back of her hand. His sister's hand. She reached for him with her free hand and their fingers intertwined, tightened and toyed with each other, exploring, but he slipped his hand away. She was holding him tighter, even moving her hand tentatively up and down the shaft, but still just exploring. "It's cute," she said. "What?" "It's not scary. Close up, it's not scary, not like I thought." She held it, her face close. Not moving her head, she very softly asked, "Can I kiss it?" She spoke softly and Jay couldn't hear her clearly. He simply murmured, "good girl," several times. She leaned forward and gave him a delicate peck right on the end of his pee hole. It jumped. She held it, then let her tongue tickle the end. Jay couldn't hold back his sigh. His total satisfaction was impossible for Lynn to miss. She held him firmly and painted the end with her tongue, then kissed him again. A firmer kiss, not the little, momentary peck. Again, and than again. Her lips widened and a fraction of the head passed her lips. She held it there, pressed her lips against the tip, pressed harder and the tip slip just inside her lips. "Does it feel good?" "Oh yeah, oh yeah." She kissed him again, then drew a little more into her mouth. Jay stopped trying to control the sounds coming from his throat. Lynn looked up with a smile while she let the head slide in and locked her lips around the ridge. It popped out. "I'm not very good at this, am I?" "You rock," Jay said as he tried to catch his breath. Lynn brought his cock close to her mouth again, then pulled her head back. "Don't come in me. That scares me. I'm not in the movies." "Hell, no, 'course not," Jay said but it scared him, too. "Don't worry. But when it goes, it goes. If I say I'm cumming, I'm cumming." "What will happen?" "Don't you worry about it. Just stop what you're doing a let me grab it." Good Lord, Jay thought. He felt ridiculous talking about his cock. Personal stuff cumming, grabbing his own cock. He shook his head, it was comical worried about talking about his cock while his own sister was giving him head. Was he nuts? He reached for her mask and started to lift but she snapped her head back. "Don't do that!" "Calm down. Christ." Jay said frustrated by her resistence. She looked away from him, past him, towards a corner of the room. "Please?" Her voice was very soft. "Just leave things as they are. Humor me? I couldn't do this if you were looking. Okay?" "Okay, don't fall apart on me," he said scornfully. His voice was rude and rough. All of her body English was saying 'Mouse' again. "Okay M--." He stopped himself in shock. His heart thumped. He had almost called her 'Mouse.' Almost given himself away. He tried to speak gently. "No problem. He tangled his fingers in her hair and gently kneaded it. He swayed his hips sideways and pressed the shaft of his cock against a cheek. A tentative, shy smile appeared on her face. She turned her face and let the head of his cock tickle across her lips. She kissed him and his cock jumped away from her lips. He took her hands and wrapped her fingers around his shaft. "Tighter, tighter," he said as he clamped roughly down upon her fingers. "Ahh, yeah. That's the way." More of his cock slid into her mouth. He let go of her hands and she began to use his juices, her juices to make his cock slick as she slid her hand up and down his shaft. Almost immediately, Jay jerked his body in panic. "I'm cumming!" She jerked back as he grabbed at his cock. It started to buck in his hand and he covered the end with his hands. She reached and gripped his shaft, her hand pressed tight against his pubic hair. "Oh, oh, oh." He tried desperately to control his voice as he started to spurt cum into his cupped hands. His cock jumped forever but finally slowed to a slow throb. Sperm seeped between his fingers. "Damn, I should have squirted in the toilet," he said. He felt a terrible weariness. "Just a sec." Lynn turned and reached for the roll of toilet paper. She pulled a wad off and gave it to Jay. She pulled more for herself. Jay watched her legs spread, her hand wipe across her secret place. She stood up and moved aside. A red ring from the toilet seat was painted across her bottom. Jay leaned over the toilet and let his cum drip like wet taffy into the bowl. Next to him, Lynn was pulling her leotard ever higher, watching him. Her dark triangle disappeared, her belly, then her beautiful tits were back inside. Jay leaned over the toilet forever. He struggled and was finally able to pee. It was a slow process. Someone banged on the door and Jay hollered back that he'd be out in a minute. Finally, it seemed like forever, he milked the last drops out and stuck himself back into his jeans. "Peeing with a hard-on is not recommended," he said to a watching Lynn. He washed his hands and they left the bathroom. A Norse god of some sort, holding a big hammer, gave them a long look as they left the bathroom.. They each had another beer but Jay could hardly swallow. He told himself it was just the aftereffect of cumming but he couldn't stop his shakes, stop his fear that he had already hung around Lynn too long. It was all going to come apart. He made an excuse and left the party, left Lynn sitting on a couch looking like she was going to puke. He stepped out the front door but a voice called, "Hey, leaving so early?" He stopped and turned. Derek was standing in the hallway. "Gotta catch a ride," Jay said. "No problem. Catch you later, Jay." Jay froze. He was sure he had fooled Derek. Everything depended on him being a mystery. He nervously looked back at the house as he trotted down the steps. Well, maybe, he thought, Derek was just shortening the name of Jason. That had to be it. He continued to walk but his good mood had vanished. He crossed the field, tricky in the dark, crossed the Wal-Mart parking lot, and headed towards the bus stop. The hard, cold lights gave everything a flat, hard look. Cold. The autumn nights were getting cooler and he shivered as the breeze tickled the sweat on his neck. "Get a load of that guy," a voice said from somewhere behind him. "All kinds of crazy stuff going on tonight," a second voice answered. He looked at the mask in his hand. He felt stupid, dressed like a moron. He climbed onto the bus and buried himself in the corner of his seat. He stared at the mask in his lap and realized he had to dump the evidence. No way he could dare leaving it around the house. He couldn't ever wear it again, anyway, not while Lynn was still living. He got off of the bus a stop early, hurried behind a gas station, and dropped his mask into a dumpster. It landed with a hollow, metallic thump. His cape followed. He took one look over the edge, then headed back down the street. The memory of his costume, rumpled and sad, at the bottom of the dumpster flashed in front of his eyes. It had looked so sad in the dumpster. His costume. On the floor next to his bed. The bottom dropped out of his stomach. He forced himself to keep walking. He had to think this through. How had his costume looked from the bedroom door? A black mound at the foot of his bed. Was that how he had dropped it? Had it been moved? How could he know? Could Lynn have seen it while he was in the shower? His cock prickled. How could he ever know? He shook his head. She had to be clueless, she couldn't have any idea of who Lucifer really was. But what if she had known? Or, worse, what if she had known that he knew who she was? He felt tired. Walking was a chore. He wondered what he would see in Lynn's eyes the next time he met her. He couldn't talk to her. He would never know what he was seeing. He would never know what she knew. He would never know what she was thinking behind those eyes.