The Pumpkin Man

You see posters littered everywhere around you. Bold headings screaming about the serial killer on the loose. The pictures show a man, his face hidden inside a jack-o-lantern, wearing a brown dirty jacket, nails long and dirty. He was always seen carrying a kitchen knife, that was stained red with the blood of his victims. Or, at least that’s what the rumors suggested. He was known to chase his victims, mainly on Halloween. His name, as given by the townsfolk, was Pumpkin man. 

Despite knowing all this, you shudder thinking about how you are all alone on Halloween night, trudging through the empty streets, grocery bags in tow. You internally cry, cursing your ill-fate that your car had to stop working in between and that no one was free to tow it away. Since this was your first month in this new town, you aren’t close enough with anyone to ask for help. They are all just acquaintances, hence it wouldn’t seem right to ask them for help, especially when everyone knows of the danger lurking about outside. Your house thankfully is only a few blocks away, so you pray for the best and start walking home.

As you walk a few meters, you suddenly sense a presence behind you. You dare not look back, lest it be the Pumpkin man. Whoever it was, was at least a few meters away, so you quicken your leisure walk to a brisk pace, trying to ease your nerves and think rationally. 

However, when you quicken your pace, the person behind does the same too, and that frightens you more. You start walking faster, fear clouding your better judgment, and you start praying that it isn’t your turn, that you don’t end up being his next victim. 

When you feel him a few feet away, you turn to a mad dash, wondering why those few blocks seem to be miles away. You clutch the grocery bags till your knuckles turn white, your breath comes out in pants. You are scared beyond your wits, and all you want is for this nightmarish experience to end. The person behind you also runs, trying to catch up to you. 

You turn around the corner and glance back a second. They have disappeared. You sigh, and grab the keys from your pocket, trying to fit it in the keyhole. However, your fatigued state prevents you from seeing properly, and the key doesn’t fit easily. Frustrated, you continue in vain to fit the key inside. It enters; however, something stops you.

You feel a sharp pointy end on the back of your neck, and all your flustered thoughts vanish. All you can think now is how this is your end. You squeeze your eyes shut, praying it’s someone you knew or your parents, or a bad dream. Slowly, holding your breath, you turn around. 

When you open your eyes, you catch a glimpse of an orange head and a yellow smile. Then you enter a world of darkness.

On seeing the bloody mess on the floor, the pumpkin man smiles. He yet again caught another victim, dumb enough to roam the streets on Halloween. His next sacrifice for Halloween lies on the floor, and it satisfies him to no end. Halloween is his, and no one can change that.

With a smirk, he walks away. His knife gleams red, leaving a bloody trail in its wake.