Chucky

            Akash ran his fingers through the costumes hanging on the carousel, trying to make up his mind. His skin tingled when he touched the Chucky costume and a strange sensation overpowered him. Without thinking further he persuaded his mother to swipe her credit card.

            He placed the paper bag in the backseat and his mum pulled out of the driveway. Akash was impatient to get home and try it on.  He fiddled with the red wig, plastic cleaver, denim overalls and the signature mask. He pressed his finger against the deep cut on the mask’s forehead and wondered how he was going to look tonight at the Halloween party

            All his classmates were beyond recognition. He slipped subtly into the crowd and absorbed the spirit of Halloween. Other than the usual pumpkins, cobwebs, pitchforks and skeletons, he noticed tiny toy angels at each corner of the room. He decided to ignore it and have a blast that night. He tried to pick out his friends from the crowd and eventually they found one another. They poked fun at each other and didn’t realize that it was getting late. Akash had a splitting headache and decided to head home early.

            Akash wobbled into his room. All he wanted was to remove this costume and hit the sack. He fumbled to find the base of the mask. Oddly, he was pinching at his own skin, as if it had become seamlessly a part of him. Thinking that the glue was too strong, he decided to remove his overalls first. The buckle seemed jammed and he frantically yanked to free himself. Pulverized by grip and fear, he attempted to remove the shirt under the overalls when he realized that the ends of the colorful long sleeved-shirt were stuck to him. This time, when he pressed the deep cut on the mask, he felt the pain for real on his skin.

            Fun and games had stepped out of the room and Akash came to terms with the possibility that it was no longer a costume, but HE himself had become Chucky…