How had Trevor disappeared so quickly? Lolly gripped her trophy. Grandma Toady said, "Come on kids, let's go Trick or Treat!"

Mitzi shouted, "CANDY!"

Uncle Luke told Mitzi, "You only get to eat two peices after all the junk you have had this evening."

On their way off the football field, they divided into seperate groups. Munch, Max and Kevin rode back to the trailer with Mrs. Dutchendorph. Uncle Luke and Mitzi went in his truck and Lolly rode with Grandma Toady.

On the trip home, Lolly was very quiet. Grandma Toady asked, "You okay?"

"Yeah, just all the excitement."

"Did I see you on the Ferris Wheel with Trevor?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Did you enjoy the ride?"

She shrugged. "I never can think of anything to say and I just end up feeling stupid."

"You are quiet like your pa. Its okay. Give it some time."

Lolly thought, If there is time to give. Lisa and Viv were not shy. She had been in the same classes with them since junior high. If they wanted something or someone they went after it or them. Was Trevor their current target? If so, she did not have a chance.

They pulled into the drive. Everyone piled out and headed inside for a potty break before they hit the streets for candy. Once they were outside again, Mitzi had Puccini pinned to her dress and her second place ribbon. Munch wore his ribbon too. Lolly had left her trophy behind. Last Halloween a man had killed a child with a cyanide-laced pixie stick, so now they were only allowed to Trick or Treat from people they knew. Since they knew most every one in the trailer park, they would have a decent candy hall, but it was not going to be like it used to be.

As they made their way down the street, Mitzi tap danced. She grabbed Munch's hand, and he danced with her. At the top of her lungs, she shouted, "We are NUMBER TWOS! WE GOT RIBBONS TO PROVE IT! YES WE DO!" Munch was not the least bit bothered by this display, but Max looked like he wanted to climb under a rock. Finally, the Trick or Treating was over. The haul was fair.

Inside the trailer, came the hard part, separating Mitzi from her candy. To everyone's relief, Mitzi was so happy about her ribbon and her tap shoes, she didn't make a fuss. The candy was checked out, divided up and put away.

Max suggested a game of Risk. Lolly declined. She didn't like war games. Besides, Max would win anyway. He was more aggressive than Uncle Luke, Kevin or Munch. Grandma Toady and Mrs. Dutchendorph went into the rummage room to talk, most likely about Pa. Mitzi went into the bathroom and danced in front of the mirror on the linoleum floor. Lolly wen to her room and changed out of her Blue Fairy costume into her sweats. She put the flower hat into a shoe box. Fluff lay on her bed, she climbed up beside him and lay down. His comforting purr rumbled in his chest. Absently, Lolly stroked his fur as she went over each detail of the evening.

The phone rang. Panicked, Lolly leapt off the bed and raced to Grandma Toady’s room. It might not be Trevor, but if it was, there was no way anyone else was going to answer the phone. She picked up the extension phone. “Hello?”

“Hey Lolly, its Trevor.”

Kathunk, Kathunk went her heart. “Hi.”

“Sorry, I didn’t get to talk to you before I left the carnival. Jake’s mom was driving and she’s a real battle axe. I wanted to tell you congratulations.”

“Thank you.” The on going trouble with connecting words was absolutely freezing her up inside.

“I thought you made a perfect Fairy.”

His words rained down on her like fairy dust. She felt like she could fly. “Thank you, so much Trevor.” Five words in a row. That was an improvement. In the distance Lolly heard what sounded like a truck rumbling. Car doors opened and closed. She asked, “Where are you?”

“I’m outside the Seven Eleven.”

He had called her from a pay phone?

“The guys are getting some toilet paper to go wrap houses.”

A very unoriginal Halloween Prank. “Oh.”

A little too quickly he added, “I’m not going. They are gonna drop me off.”

There was a loud burst of noise on Trevor’s end of the phone. It was the sound of boys exploding from the store. One of them shouted, “Man, you checkin in with your old Lady again?”

Trevor said, “No, and shut up!”

“Ooo,” said another voice, “who you talkin too this time lover boy?”

Trevor whispered, "Sorry, Lolly, these guys are jerks. I gotta go. Talk to you later. Bye.”

“Bye.” The line went dead. Lolly put the receiver in its cradle. She did not know how she was supposed to feel. He said he would call her, he did call her. That was something. Yes, it was something. It was way more than she expected just a few weeks ago. Fear nibbled at the back of her brain. What if Trevor did become a reality in her life? Reality never met imagination. She had always been pretty comfortable in her imaginary world. Trevor could be anything she imagined as long as she didn't really know him. The truth was she didn't know him. What would happen when he became a real live boy in her world and not just a projection of her imagination? Would she like him more or less?

There was a knock on the door. It was Munch, he came in and asked, “Was that Trevor?"

“You sure are nosy.”

He stuck his nose in the air and sniffed. “I smell recent heart palpitations for Trevor Long.”

“You are such a Goof!”

He looked her straight in the eyes and asked, “No really, was it him?”

She nodded.

Munch's grin was so pleased she suspected that he had more than a little to do with Trevor’s call.

*

Monday morning on the bus, Munch was yammering away beside Lolly. She really just wanted him to shut up. Soon the bus would be at Trevor’s stop. She felt like every muscle in her body got tenser by the mile. Through the window she saw him. Hooded sweat shirt with the school name emblazoned on it, track pants and Nike shoes. When the bus stopped, he looked up at her and smiled. She smiled back. She watched him climb into the bus. As always, he gave her and Munch a wave and went to his seat. The bus jerked forward. Too soon, they were at the school. The bus unloaded. Lolly and Munch went their way, Trevor went his.

As the day progressed, Lolly tried in vain to catch a glimpse of Trevor, but he was no where to be seen. Where was he? During lunch, she went to the library alone. Munch had gone to the art room. On the table was her cursed Geometry book. She honestly thought that math was the work of Satan. Why couldn’t her brain wrap around this subject? It was always such a struggle. She erased her answer again.

Lisa and Viv came into the library and sat at the table across from her. They did not acknowledge her presence. They never did. Great!

A little too loudly, Viv said, “Yesterday, I talked to Trevor after Mass. He is such a fox. I asked him for his number and he gave it to me!" She let out a little squeal.

Everything in Lolly’s head went very still. She stopped breathing.

Lisa asked, “Did you call him?"

"Yes! Last night. We talked forever."

Lisa asked, "Did he ask you out?’

Viv sighed. “No, not yet.”

Lolly took in a breath. Trevor had asked for her number. She had not asked for his. He called her Friday night. She had not called him. He had anot asked her out either, still he had called her, but they had not talked forever. That couldn't be good.

The library doors opened and who should walk in, but Trevor Long. He had a stack of books in his arms. He went to the desk and deposited them into the return chute. He turned and smiled in her general direction. He was headed in her general direction. Lolly was not sure if he was coming to her table or the other table. To Viv and Lisa he said, “Hey.”

Viv flashed a smile so big it was a wonder her face didn’t split in two. He passed by their table. His eyes were on Lolly. Viv said, “Hey Trevor. Sit with us.”

Trevor turned. His back was now to Lolly. In his hand was a folded note. He dropped it onto Lolly’s table. To the girls he said, “Sorry, can’t. I gotta get back to English.”

Lolly grabbed the note and slid it into her sweatshirt pocket. Without looking back at her, Trevor left the library. She watched him leave, as did Lisa and Viv. Her hand closed over the note. What did it contain? She was afraid to find out.

The lunch bell rang.

Through her next two periods, she was totally distracted by the unread note in her pocket. When the final bell of the day rang, she made a dash for the nearest restroom, went into a stall and unfolded the note.

Trevor had terrible hand writing. There were two sentences on the page. The first was, "Would you come to my cross country meet after school on Friday?" The second was, "Amber said she could give you a ride home." Lolly's name was not on the note and neither was Trevor's. That was a little weird, or maybe it was just the way guys did things. She honestly didn't know.

On the bus, she broke her strict code of silence and told Munch abou the note. His only comment was, "So are you gonna go?"

"Only if you come too."

"No honey, you are on your own. I got stuff to sew. I don't have time to baby sit you."

Insulted, Lolly punched him in the arm.

"Doing me bodily harm again. So you goin' or not?"

Because she was angry she said, "I'm going."

He gave her a too pleased smile.

"Why are you smiling like that?"

"Oh, I 'm just smiling."

"Yeah, right."