The October House

Anyway, when we started high school in the fall, Ron and I were the only ones who regularly came. In mid October we went to help decorate her place for Halloween once again. We each had something we had to do on Saturday morning so it was two or three o'clock before we were able to get started.

By the time we had all the decorations and lights in place, dusk had fallen. This wasn't a problem as we had lights on our bikes and the weather was good. We showed Mrs. Bradford what we had done and she gave enthusiastic approval and thanked us for our work. Although she could still get along by herself, she was old enough that she would probably not have been able to do it all by herself.

When we started to leave, the moon, a day or so short of full, had just risen. There were some clouds scudding across the sky, now and then hiding it for a short time, but the bright silver light often flooded the world, reflecting off the lake, and dancing among the shadows of the fall leaves. As we started out the door, Ron asked if I'd like to take a walk out back. I nodded and we asked Mrs. Bradford if it would be OK.

She looked from one of us to the other and then smiled, a far away look in her eyes. "Of course. You can just leave you bikes here and get them when you leave. I'm probably going to eat a little something and then go to bed early. Thank you once again."

We made our way around back. The woods had several paths through it and, in fact, part of the work we had done during the summer was keeping them clear. Now we headed down a path that wound through the dense trees and at one point looped out to the cliff above the lakeshore. When we reached that point we were holding hands and we stopped to look out at the lake. The moon alternately emerged and hid among the dark clouds. The air was cool by now - probably in the upper fifties - and a slight breeze was stirring the leaves, swirling the fallen ones with little gusts and inducing the ones still remaining on the trees to make a dry, crackling sound. All together a lovely, romantic night.

We stood, looking out at the lake. The breeze was making small waves break against the shore and the sound of their splashing rose from below us. Ron reached and took my left hand in his left, freeing his right, but not for long. His right arm moved up my back and settled around my shoulders. I snuggled a little closer, my head resting on his shoulder.

We stood like that for a couple of minutes. Then Ron said, "It is beautiful out tonight, isn't it?"

I turned and looked up at him. "Yes, absolutely lovely." I remained turned, looking up at him as he turned towards me. Then neither of us looked away. We just stared into each other's eyes for what seemed a long, long time. I suddenly became aware that Ron's lips were moving closer to mine and I felt my heart beating rapidly, unsure if I should pull away. Then I realized I had decided with no conscious thought; my lips were moving towards his also, not away.

That was my first real kiss. It wasn't a peck but went on for several seconds. We seemed to freeze, still looking deeply into each other's eyes. Then without a word we repeated the kiss and this time it lasted much longer.

We must have stayed there for some time. Neither of us looked at a watch, but when we finally retrieved our bikes and started home, it was nearly nine. Ron rode with me to my house. He waited while I put my bike around the side and came back to the front door. Then again without a word we came together for a kiss, although a much shorter one this time. Somewhere in the back of our minds I'm sure we were aware that someone might see us here.

Ron and I began to date more frequently and most evenings we'd find somewhere to spend a little time necking. Neither of us thought we were in love or anything. We were friends. Good friends. We had been friends for some time and liked each other a lot. Now the new aspects of our relationship did nothing to change our friendship but added a new dimension. Neither of us were dumb. We were fourteen and both of us knew that a lot of it was hormones. That didn't make it any less exciting. Still, we never went any further than some serious kissing.

Halloween was on a Monday two weeks later. By now my group was a little old for Trick-or-Treating. We did have a party on the Saturday before and still dressed up. I went as a female vampire and Ron dressed as the Frankenstein monster with fake stitches along the side of his head. Then on Monday we went over to Mrs. Bradford's to help her hand out candy to the little kids. We wore our costumes and Mrs. Bradford again dressed as a witch much as she had been that first time I saw her. She again thanked us for helping and before we left used a self timer on her camera to take a picture of the three of us. Later she gave each of us a copy with the inscription "From the Witch of the October House."

During that winter we continued to go over to Mrs. Bradford's to clear snow or help out in other ways. She was always happy to see us and ready to provide snacks, drinks or meals depending on just when and what we were doing. We both found her a delight to talk with. She had done so many interesting and exciting things, many of which we hoped to do ourselves someday. Thinking back, I don't believe either of us ever regarded her in the slightest as out of touch or too old. And, yes, we did respect her but she also seemed to respect us and our opinions. She never treated us as little kids but was always ready to listen to what we had to say.

Ron had turned fifteen in March but my birthday wasn't until just after school was out. I had been planning a big party, but two weeks before, problems arose. For some time we had known that my dad was going to have to make a trip for his work fairly soon but not exactly when. Now we found he would be gone for two weeks over my birthday. That wouldn't have been so bad except that my mom got a call from her sister. She had to go in for some surgery and would need help for two or three weeks afterwards. Could my mom please come and help her out? Mom agreed - she really had no choice. I was old enough to stay by myself but my parents firmly said no party while they were gone.

At fourteen this almost seemed like the end of the world. Oh, not really, but I was very disappointed. The next Saturday Ron and I were over helping Mrs. Bradford with some cleaning and I happened to mention the situation. She thought and considered things for all of thirty seconds. "Suppose I call your mom and see if I can host the party over here?"

I was astounded. "That would be wonderful, but it would be a lot of trouble. You don't really want twenty noisy teenagers running around here."

She laughed. "Why not? It might be exciting."

The end result was she did exactly that. At first my parents were a little hesitant but she convinced them she really wanted to do it and that I hadn't even suggested the idea in any way. They finally agreed and said they would bring over all the food and things. Actually they would both be gone but Ron's parents would be giving me a ride over and they said it would be no trouble to take everything over for them.

When that Saturday came, Ron and I were driven over to the October House with everything including our bikes. We would be riding them home and his parents would take us back the next day to pick up everything else. We got over there about one and spent the afternoon putting up paper lanterns with little lights, balloons, and other decorations. The weather was perfect. Clear, warm, no chance of rain. The party would be out back by the fire pit. We had borrowed three folding picnic tables to go with the big one there and had another small table to hold food. I think we must have had enough snacks and other junk food to last us a week, as well as the cake. We got a bunch of sub sandwiches to have as a meal and Ron brought over a portable CD player so we could dance.

Mrs. Bradford seemed almost as excited as I was myself. "It's been years since there has been a birthday party here. I'm really glad this is working out."

"Thank you again, Mrs. Bradford. I was so afraid I wouldn't be able to have the party at all. You're wonderful to let me. We'll try to keep the noise down so it won't bother you."

"Nonsense! You can be a loud as you want. No one else lives close to here and I'm a little hard of hearing." Then she smiled and teased, "I can always turn my hearing aid off if it's too loud. Really, I love to see you having fun. Go and do what you want - just within the rules."

When she had agreed, she had set a couple of rules. No drinking. No other forbidden substances. No sex. Then she had said that a little kissing was all right. This was followed by a wide smile and she added, "Even a lot of kissing. Remember, I was fifteen once."

The party was perfect. There were about twenty of us, all fourteen or fifteen. Mrs. Bradford joined us for supper and cake but afterwards retired to the back porch where we could see her in her rocking chair looking out at us. We played some games, played music and danced. I got a number of nice presents. As darkness fell, the little paper lanterns provided enough light along with the stars and a moon just short of the first quarter.

We danced a lot and yes, there was some kissing. Quite a bit, actually, but nothing more. We stayed until after eleven when the party began to wind down. Ron and I thanked everyone for coming. Mrs. Bradford had gone up to bed earlier, so we shut everything down and closed the house for her. She knew we were coming back to clean up in the morning but I left her a note along with a big box of her favorite candies.

Ron and I rode together to my house. I invited him in for a coke before he went on home. Since my parents were both gone, the house was empty. When he had been there about fifteen minutes, I suddenly realized this. And it scared me. Not being by myself. No, I was scared because I suddenly had the urge to take him into my bedroom. But I knew I wasn't going to do that. At least I didn't think I would do that.

When he finished his drink, I think Ron had realized the same thing because he said, "Diane, I think I'd better leave. If I stay any longer I may try something we will both regret."

With my smile a little shaky I nodded. "I might also."

He moved to the front door and then turned and took me in his arms for a nice kiss. When he pulled back, we were both a little breathless but he managed to say, "Good night and happy birthday. I'll see you about ten."

After he left, I stood with my back leaning against the door for at least three full minutes while my pulse slowed and I thought about what might very well have happened if he had stayed.

During that summer we again cut her grass and helped with other things. Now it was almost always just Ron and myself but we had no problem with that. It also gave us a chance to disappear into the woods and spend some time in some serious kissing. Despite the way we had felt after my birthday party we never went any further than kisses. Not that we didn't feel like it. No, we just were careful not to put ourselves in a situation where it would have been too easy to get carried away.

When school started again in September our trips to the October House became a little less frequent. We still went out there to help out but the grass no longer needed cutting and the snow hadn't yet come. When October came we once more helped decorate for Halloween and again were there to hand out candy.

There was a long rainy stretch in early November and for three weeks we didn't make it out there. The next weekend we called to see if she needed anything done, but she didn't answer the phone. We tried again the next day but still no answer. I told my parents that I was concerned and they agreed someone should check on her and called the local police to ask them to check.

We later found that when the police stopped by, they found Mrs. Bradford in her bed, no longer alive. A doctor was summoned and his verdict was that she had died in her sleep two days before. He said it was probably the most peaceful death she could have had.

Her sons and daughter were contacted. None were truly surprised because of her age and all had talked with her at sometime during the previous three or four weeks. A funeral was set for the following Friday.

At fifteen I had never attended a funeral before. Ron had once for a great uncle but that was all. The service was closed casket and, as per her wish, the remains were cremated and the ashes scattered from the cliff-top behind the house with a strong wind blowing them out over the lake. She had once told us that is how her husband was treated also and that she planned to eventually join him. I hoped she had.

At the memorial service we met her children and grandchildren. Surprisingly most of them knew of us and what we had been doing for her the past few years. All thanked us profusely.

We also got the impression that all three families, as well as their own children, were pretty well off financially. This was reinforced a week later when, surprisingly, we were asked to attend the reading of her will. There were several individual bequests with the remainder of her liquid assets being divided among the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. It was decided that the house itself would be put up for sale but no one was in a hurry for it to sell. In fact a realtor had said it was unlikely to sell easily or for its real value because of the age and location. So it would go on the market until someone made a good offer.

The most surprising thing was the two bequests she had made to Ron and myself. She had left each of us five thousand dollars. Her family all assured us they thought this perfectly fair and didn't resent it at all. It would certainly help in two years when we went to college.

Life continued. Throughout the rest of sophomore year and through the next two, Ron and I continued to date each other. Were we in love? We never said so. We cared deeply for each other but neither of us knew if it would always be this way. Our amorous activity certainly continued and even intensified but we restrained ourselves from going too far.

We did still occasionally go out into the woods by the October House. The house itself remained empty. Partly this might have been because the grounds were no longer kept up. No curb appeal so to speak - even though out here there were no curbs along the road. It wasn't that the house itself was in bad repair or anything, but it did look a little lonely and forlorn as any old Victorian can.

Something else did happen concerning the house. It somehow gained a reputation as being haunted. I never found out how this started, but from a number of sources I heard that someone had told someone who had told someone that they had seen lights or spectral figures around the house. However, no one could ever identify any of the original sources. One story was that an old woman was seen standing on the Widow's Walk looking out at the lake. Another said lights appeared in some of the windows and then were suddenly extinguished. Still another proclaimed a ghostly figure walked the grounds, never leaving footprints or any other permanent sign. Of course, Ron and I never took any of these stories seriously but there were many of the kids we knew who at least somewhat believed them.

I did get a funny feeling every time I drove by the house but that was simply a sense of what had been and what we had known there. Especially at Halloween, when the old place sat dark with none of the decorations and lights that always were there in the past. But ghosts? No, I certainly didn't believe that.

At last the end of our senior year arrived. Ron took me to the prom as he had the previous year and afterwards we spent most of the remainder of the night parked at an overlook above the lake some miles from the October House. While we certainly did engage in a lot of passionate kissing and our hands did wander a bit, unlike many of our classmates, we didn't go beyond that. When he finally brought me home about ten the next morning we were both content and happy and any frustration was only physical.

At graduation two weeks later we managed to walk to the stage side by side and received our diplomas one after another. Afterwards both sets of parents took us to dinner together.

We were both going to college at the state school some hundred miles or so distant, so it wasn't like we would be separating forever or anything. And there was still the summer before us. We both had jobs that summer. Ron had found construction work and spent most of the next twelve weeks building houses. I ended up clerking in my parents' hardware store. Actually that worked out well for all of us. They didn't have to hire another clerk and didn't have to pay my social security tax because I was their daughter. That let them pay me a little more than they would have someone else.

Ron and I still managed to get together most weekends and sometimes during the week when his work was in town. When the end of August arrived we both headed to the campus. Of course, as freshmen we couldn't have taken a car even if we had had one, so our parents drove us over. Also as freshmen, we would be living in the dorm, but at least we had managed to get in the same one.

We settled in to the college life with very few problems. Both of us had roommates we could live with and liked our classes. We still dated every weekend but, maybe surprisingly, we also dated a few other people. This didn't just happen. I forget which of us originally suggested it but we agreed that we wanted to make sure we didn't later regret not having done so. I do believe any making out was less intense with any other partners. I know mine was.

We made it through freshman year and had greatly expanded our amorous activities. We now enjoyed some rather heavy petting, but still remained virgins. This had disappointed a few of my other dates, but Ron didn't try to persuade me otherwise. And by the end of freshman year we had both decided other dates were not as satisfying as were ours with each other anyway.

During that summer Ron again worked construction and I clerked at the hardware store. We were both nineteen then and a bit less restricted in what we could do than we were in high school. We even managed a couple of overnight hikes without bringing the disapproval of any parental units. Either they trusted us or thought we would do whatever we wanted anyway.

In August Ron had a three day stretch off and I asked if I could miss a day or so also so we could do things together. The first day we spent at a park along the lake, picnicking for both lunch and supper. That evening we played miniature golf and then found a nice place to park for a couple of hours.

We planned to go somewhere on an overnight hike the next night but hadn't decided on just where. We were discussing it when we were driving back that night as we passed the October House. It was still empty, the yard a bit overgrown, but otherwise the house itself looked sound. I said something about being a little surprised it hadn't sold yet.

"Maybe the ghosts are keeping buyers away," Ron teased.

"Oh, come now! You don't believe .." Then I suddenly realized he was teasing me.

He laughed. "No, but a lot of people around here do. I've even heard some of the construction crew talking about it seriously. You know, I've heard that every now and then someone will dare someone to spend the night there and so far no one has taken the dare."

"Really!? People actually believe that stuff?"

"Well, remember most people never met Mrs. Bradford. They just know that an old woman who often dressed as a witch for Halloween lived out there by herself. Or by herself and a big black cat." Oliver hadn't quite outlived Mrs. Bradford and we had helped her bury him out back above the lake shore. There was even a small marker we had placed there for her.