This is the one, ten-year-old Daphne thought, thumping on a large, bright orange pumpkin.

  “Did you find one you like, kiddo?” Daphne’s father asked, coming up behind her and gently placing his hand on her shoulder.

  “This is it,” she replied, smiling brightly at him.

  “It’s a beautiful one,” her dad replied, smiling back warmly at her. “Do you think that Mom should grow some pumpkins in the backyard for us next year?”

  Daphne’s grin widened. “Will they be as big as these?” she asked, attempting to pick up her chosen one herself, only to barely be able to lift it off the ground.

  Her father laughed a little. “I’m not sure, we’ll have to see what she can do.”

  “I want her to grow ones as enormous as this,” Daphne replied, pouting.

  “If it was simple to grow ones this big, we wouldn’t need to come to the pumpkin patch, would we?” her father asked, tapping her on the chin. She laughed a little as he pulled out clippers from his pocket, and cut the pumpkin from the vine.

  “It’s more fun to come anyway,” Daphne replied, staring up at the tree that hungover them as it was rustled by the wind, letting down a few yellow leaves.

  “It is a lot of fun to come, isn’t it?” he asked, hoisting her pumpkin up with relative ease. “Plus, we’ve been coming here every year since before you were born!” he exclaimed. “It’s practically a tradition at this point!”

  He walked with Daphne up to the couple of pumpkins that Cy and Maggie had already picked out and set hers down next to theirs. “Will Viola get a pumpkin this year?” Daphne asked, plopping down on the cool grass next to her pumpkin. She dangled her arm down onto it, and it made the dull thud sound she loved so much again.

  “I’m not sure,” her dad replied, tapping his finger on his chin. “We’ll have to see what Mom says.”

  “She should have the tiniest one in the patch!” Daphne exclaimed brightly.

  Her father smiled back at her. “That would be super cute, wouldn’t it?” he asked.

  “It would,” she confirmed.

  “Well, kiddo, I’ll be right back. I need to check on Ollie and your mom. Can you keep the pumpkins watched over?”

  “Of course,” Daphne replied. “You know you can count on me, Dad.”

  “You’re so dependable,” he replied with a chuckle. “Be right back!” He strode away from her. Cy and Maggie were nowhere to be found.

  Where did they go? Daphne wondered, looking around at the small clearing. Other families were picking out pumpkins and making small piles of their own.

  Daphne took a deep breath of the chilly air. This is the best season. Halloween is my favorite holiday. She was really looking forward to getting to dress up as a pilot. She tried to pick out something that she could use stuff they already had at home, and her father’s love of planes made it an easy choice.

  Someday I’ll have my own money. And then I’ll buy the coolest astronaut costume ever.

  The wind rustled her floofy hair, the cool breeze rattling the leaves across the ground. “The haunted house looks so cool,” Daphne heard her brother Cy say. “I wonder if they’ll let us go in it.”

  “Tch,” she heard Maggie say. “So, we can all watch you run away in fear?” she asked.

  “I won’t run!” Cy shouted. Daphne turned to see Cy push Maggie who only scowled back at her brother.

  “That’s what you always say, Cy,” she said. “And then you scream like a baby.”

  “I don’t scream like a baby!” Cy shouted back.

  “Sounds like you’re screaming like a baby now,” twelve-year-old Maggie replied, sticking her tongue out.

  “Guys!” Daphne’s father’s voice said. “Rather than fighting, why don’t you start schlepping pumpkins to the car?” He placed another down next to Daphne’s feet and offered the keys to Cy. Oliver giggled behind her father.

  “Daphne, yours is enormous!” Oliver exclaimed.

  “I looked for the biggest and roundest one,” Daphne replied, puffing her chest out.

  “Move,” Cy commanded her, kicking at her rear. “Or it will be the flattest one on the ground.”

  “Don’t hurt it,” she pleaded, gently rubbing it before scooting so that he could pick it up.

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  “Please be careful, Cy,” her father emphasized. “We can’t afford to buy extra pumpkins.”

  “Yes, I know,” Cy grumbled. Maggie picked up another of the pumpkins, and Oliver sat down next to the one their father had just sat down near Daphne.

  “Be right back again,” he said with a small smile.

  “What are you going to carve on yours?” Oliver asked Daphne.

  “Probably a cat face,” Daphne replied. “What are you thinking?”

  “Something scary looking!” her younger brother exclaimed.

  Daphne grimaced. “Why are you all obsessed with scary things?” she asked. “Halloween should be about candy.”

  Ollie shook his head. “Halloween is supposed to be scary,” he insisted.

  “You’re the only one who thinks Halloween is just for candy,” Daphne, Cy’s voice said behind her. “It’s probably because you’re a big wuss.”

  Daphne turned and scowled at him. “Only stupid people love being scared,” she shot back, her heart aching from Cy’s barbed comment.

  “Only the strong desire fear,” Cy replied back. “Which just means you’re weak.”

  “Stop,” Maggie groaned. “Let’s just carry these pumpkins before Mom and Dad get back, Cy.”

  “Ugh,” he replied, bending over to pick up one of the last two pumpkins. Maggie lifted the one by Ollie.

  “Do you want to play cars when we get home?” Ollie asked Daphne.

  “That sounds fun,” Daphne replied with a smile.

  “I wonder how long it will take for them all to get out of traffic today,” Ollie said.

  Daphne saw her mother who had Viola strapped to her front, and her father, coming back, hauling a few more pumpkins in a tow.

  Why did Mom and Viola have to come? Why couldn’t she just ask Dad to bring back pumpkins for the two of them?

  Viola was almost a year old, meaning their mother had spent an inordinate amount of time trying to get her to stay calm during the car ride, and as soon as they had gotten to the pumpkin farm. As far as Daphne was concerned, it had been a waste of all of their time to wait for their mother to deal with Viola.

  I can’t wait to go home.

  Viola started fussing on their mother’s stomach in the carrier. Daphne saw the exasperated look on her mother’s face and knew that today was going to be a rough day, come what may.

  “Dad!” Cy exclaimed. Daphne turned and saw her two older siblings walking up to the group. “Dad, did you know there was a haunted house here?” Cy asked.

  “They have that every year,” her father replied with a smile she recognized as a frustrated one. He carefully set the pumpkins down.

  “Can we go to it?” Maggie asked.

  Her father’s smile turned even more strained, and he looked over at Daphne’s mother. She was bouncing up and down, trying to calm the fussy Viola. “Kim,” he said. “The kids want to go to the haunted house.”

  Kim’s eyes lit up as if she was a kid on Christmas morning. Oh no. Mom is going to want to go through it, too. Daphne’s stomach rolled inside of her, twisting and releasing as it went. God, I do not want to go through the haunted house at all.

  “That sounds fun,” Kim said. “What do you think, Ian?” she asked.

  “What about Viola?” Ian asked. “Won’t she cry from all the screaming?”

  Kim shrugged. “It will just be interpreted as someone upset by the haunted house, probably,” she said.

  Ian looked as though he didn’t quite believe her. Daphne knew her dad was not one to argue with their mother. Whatever she said was typically how things went.

  Crap. Cy and Maggie picked up the last pumpkins. She looked over at Ollie, who also seemed to be excited by the idea of the haunted house. I’m completely out numbered.

  “Alright, then,” Ian said, wiping the sweat off his brow. Daphne noticed that the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “While you both take those last pumpkins to the car, I’ll go buy us some tickets so we can go through the haunted house.”

  “Yes!” Cy exclaimed, and Daphne knew that if he didn’t have arms full of pumpkins, that he would be fist punching the air. “Thanks, Dad!” he exclaimed.

  Daphne turned and watched the three of them leave, before she turned back to Ollie and her mother. Her heart was pounding in her chest.

  What should I do? It’s too late to tell Dad not to buy me tickets. Should I just go in with all of them? Her stomach tightened. Do I even have a choice?

  “Are you excited for the haunted house, Ollie?” their mother asked, reaching down to stroke his dark, fluffy hair.

  “Obviously, Mom!” he exclaimed, as he looked up at her, his face full of glee. “I’ve always wanted to go to one! They look so cool!”

  Kim grinned back at her child, and then her dark eyes settled on Daphne like spotlights searching through Daphne’s entire being. What about you, Daph?” she asked, her smile softening a bit. “I don’t think you’ve been to a haunted house before either.”

  Daphne nodded, doing her best to paint a smile on her face as bright as Oliver’s. “I’ve never been,” she confirmed. “Thanks for letting us go, Mom!” she exclaimed. She punched her fist in the air the way she’d seen Cy do so many times before. Her mother grinned happily, and some of the tension in Daphne’s body loosened again. It retightened only moments later when she heard her father, Cy, and Maggie walking back up.

  “I hope there is a clown,” Cy was saying. “Just so I can see you tremble.”

  “Gross!” Maggie shouted back. “I hope a clown tries to chainsaw you so I can see you pee your pants!”

  “Guys, stop,” Ian said, looking overwhelmed.

  Kim just smiled at him. “Do you have the tickets?” she asked.

  He nodded and passed them out to everyone. “It takes three tickets to get in, so don’t lose them on the walk over there!”

  Ollie popped up off the ground excitedly, while Daphne stood up more slowly, pools of ice starting to settle into her stomach.

  “Don’t fall behind, Daphne!” Cy called out to her, sticking his tongue out. “Loser.”

  Daphne couldn’t bear to respond. She was struggling enough to keep her emotions in check and look like she was excited about the haunted house.

  Daphne quickly dragged behind, getting the back view of her family. No one seemed to be paying all that much attention to her or notice that she was rapidly falling behind. He couldn’t bring herself to call out to them, knowing that doing so would mean she would have to go into the haunted house with them.

  Maybe they won’t even notice that I’m not there. She glanced over at a sign that said, “Hay bale rides: one ticket.” I can just ride this a few times. I’m sure by the time they’re done with the haunted house, I should be done riding the hay bale ride.

  Taking a deep breath, feeling the pools of ice beginning to melt in her stomach, Daphne strode up to the teller for the ride.

  “One please,” she said, tearing off a single ticket and handing it to the teller.

  “Thank you,” he said, taking her ticket. “You’re going on alone?” he asked her. “Where are your parents?”

  She nodded at him. “They went to the haunted house,” she said. “They’ll swing by and pick me up when they’re done.” She smiled at him in hopes of assuaging his fears, but he still looked wary.

  “Alright,” he said. “But stay safe, kiddo. I’ll keep my eyes peeled for you.”

  “Thanks,” she said with a smile. She walked up to the hay bale ride, and climbed onto one of the back seats.