Matchmaker's Match

Chapter One

Halloween & Crushes
♡ Hannah ♡
...

"I don't get it" I say with a tilt of my head that causes my shoulder length strawberry blonde hair to fall over my left shoulder.

"I'm the Grim Reaper!" Jasper, my blonde haired little brother smiles proudly, raising his black hole filled cape with a mouthful of missing teeth- well, three to be exact.

I shake my head, "but why?" I chuckle.

"Because I'm cool!" He giggles in response.

Before I can say much more, our dad runs out of the kitchen, camera in hand and says all enthusiastically, "come on stinker, go stand with your sister at the door!" his free hand tickles Jasper.

Jasper giggles and starts to run across the near kitchen part of our house's front entry to the steps in front of the front door. Jasper runs up the stairs and stands next to me, his cape flowing in the breeze as he does so.

After posing for a picture for both mom's phone and my dad's phone and then dad's camera, I whistle for my dog Comet and watch as he runs out the kitchen to me.

"Okay bud, ready to go?" I turn to Jasper.

"Yeah!" Jasper replies and begins excitedly jumping up and down.

I give my two divorced parents a smile before grabbing Comet's leash and leading the two boys out the door.

My home life isn't as complicated as people make it seem. See, my parents got divorced when I was ten. Their relationship was amazing, but they just didn't feel that "spark" between the two of them anymore. So, they divorced and Dad moved in next door so that he could still raise Jasper, who was on the way at the time and also because him and mom were still really close.

Now, Dad and Mom are best friends and co-parent together in perfect union.

I remember being mad at first.

Now, I kind of like life this way. I mean, I have my room at Dad's and my room at mom's and I can alternate between both at the same time. See, my room at Dad's house faces my room at Mom's house, so, using the latter Mom uses to get in the attic, I can climb between houses to my window at Dad's house (If I wanted to) and sometimes, I do. But it just so happens I kind of need Comet to sleep so I don't do that very often.

"So, remind me again what houses are bad houses?" I ask Jasper while I swing our intertwined hands back and forth.

Jasper, who reaches my stomach, continues to smile; happy with knowing something I "don't".

Truth is, I know this neighborhood like the back of my hand, he just doesn't know that and so every year I act as if I forget whose house sucks and whose house doesn't.

Just so he feels some sense of proudness.

"The Mitchels are the best house" he begins, now skipping, "they give you full sized candy bars and brownies!"- as I remember.

"But- the Monarches, Smiths, and Ronalds are the worst houses" I pretended to be interested as he finished, but I already know this.

The Monarch family are dentist. I mean the WHOLE family, the kids are adults and live with their parents and they all work together. On Halloween, the five give children mints and toothpaste and sometimes tooth brushes- and not candy- and no, it's not the good mints or the good toothpaste- it's all nasty.