Short Story - Halloween Special!

"Bye Mum!" Olivia waves goodbye as the car disappears out of view. "Finally," she mutters, "I've got the house all to myself." Suzanne, Olivia's mum, is going out for the night to meet some friends and entrusting her daughter with looking after the house until she gets back. Normally, Olivia would go with her, but tonight is Halloween and Suzanne doesn't want the house to be ruined by the time she gets back.

"I think I'll make some ghost-shaped biscuits to give to the trick-or-treaters." Olivia muses; she's never been one for sweets and was always disappointed on Halloween when she returned home with a bucket full of sugar. Collecting her ingredients, she sets to work and produces some perfect dough in no time. "Good, but I can do better," Olivia has always been a perfectionist and begins to search the kitchen for something to make her biscuits outstanding, "I know! I'll use some of that glow in the dark gel we bought last Halloween for an added twist." Rushing outside into the garden, Olivia finds the gel hidden away in the shed, labelled, 'Use with caution'. "Oh well, what harm can it do?" she thinks to herself as she runs back into the house, away from the cold. Adding a little gel into the mixture, she cuts out the biscuits and puts them in the oven.

A while later, Olivia pops back into the kitchen to check on her biscuits. But they've vanished. The oven is off and the tray is completely empty. As Olivia turns around to start looking in the rest of the kitchen, she thinks she sees a flash of white disappearing into the living room. Curious, she follows it and finds more than she had bargained for. As twelve ghosts descend on her, she screams and desperately thinks of a place to hide, "The shed! The ghosts might not be able to leave the house," scrambling out of the door, she sprints to the shed and slams the door behind her. Peeking out of the window, her heart sinks as she sees the white shapes float through the back door and into the garden. However, almost as soon as they are outside, they go back indoors as if the cold is unbearable. "I don't believe it!" Olivia whispers with relief.

Half an hour later, Olivia checks her watch, "The trick-or-treaters will be coming round soon." Glancing out of the window, she expects to see the ghosts still inside the living room. But they're not anywhere to be seen. Cautiously, Olivia opens the shed door and creeps across the garden. After checking the coast is clear, she enters the living room to hear the door bell ring. "Oh no! I haven't got anything to give them." With all the biscuits gone, she doesn't know what to give the expectant children, until out of the corner of her eye she sees something quite unexpected. A plate of perfectly glowing ghost-shaped biscuits sitting on the table. The bell rings again. Knowing she doesn't have any other choice, Olivia picks up the plate, opens the front door and gives her first Halloween treat to a rather unrealistic witch. As the girl walks away holding the biscuit, Olivia thinks she sees the ghost wink at her.