Kevin had already made a costume with his mother, helped his dad decorate their home, and was imagining all the candy he would collect. But one undecorated house on his street kept bothering him. He couldn’t understand why someone would skip celebrating, so he decided they might need help. It was almost Halloween, and the whole neighborhood buzzed with excitement. Every yard seemed to be competing for the title of “spookiest on the block.” Pumpkins with jagged smiles lined the sidewalks, plastic skeletons dangled from trees, and cottony cobwebs clung to porches.

The air smelled of dry leaves and candy, and eleven-year-old Kevin breathed it all in, his heart pounding with excitement. Halloween was his favorite day of the year—a day when you could be anyone you wanted, and Kevin loved how the whole world seemed to transform for one magical night. As he strolled down the sidewalk, his eyes darted from one house to the next, each one decked out with glowing jack-o’-lanterns or eerie ghosts. Kevin couldn’t help but smile.

But as he walked farther down the street, something caught his eye—something that didn’t fit. One house stood dark and empty, the complete opposite of the festive homes around it. No pumpkins. No cobwebs. No skeletons.

Not even a tiny decoration. Kevin frowned as he realized whose house it was—Mrs. Kimbly’s. He stopped in his tracks, staring at the bare front porch. He remembered Mrs. Kimbly well. She was an older lady who lived alone and kept to herself most of the time. Kevin had helped her before, mowing her lawn in the summer and shoveling snow in the winter. She never said much, just paid him before shuffling back inside.

But today, her house seemed out of place, as if it didn’t belong to the same cheerful neighborhood. Why hadn’t Mrs. Kimbly decorated for Halloween? Everyone else had. Kevin couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right. Halloween was a time for fun, after all, and it didn’t seem fair for anyone to miss out—especially someone who lived all alone like Mrs. Kimbly. Determined, Kevin turned and dashed across the street toward her house. The leaves crunched under his sneakers as he climbed the steps to her front door.

He hesitated for a moment, then knocked. The sound echoed in the quiet, and Kevin shifted nervously. After what felt like forever, the door creaked open. There stood Mrs. Kimbly, her face set in a deep frown, her eyes narrowed behind thick glasses. Kevin stood there for a moment, stunned. He couldn’t believe it. How could someone hate Halloween so much?

He knew if her house stayed undecorated, the other kids might target it for pranks, like throwing toilet paper all over her yard. Kevin sighed and turned to leave, but as he walked away, a plan began to form in his mind. He wasn’t ready to give up yet.