Happy Halloween! 8
“Um, I would like to now commence the Halloween party. I, Satomi Chika, will serve as your host. Thank you all in advance for your cooperation.”
With a mix of anticipation and slight anxiety, Chika formally announced the start of the party, drawing the gaze of the children. She held a small paper in her hand, which she pretended not to read.
As the children began to clap, she placed a cardboard box filled with costumes on the table.
“Let’s start with the costumes! I’ll call your name, so please raise your hand. I will then hand you your costume. Let’s see, Riku-san?”
“Here!”
“Aoi-san?”
“Here!”
“Kaito-san?”
“Here!”
Chika’s insistence on using “san” even with elementary school students was very much in her character. She checked their names and handed out the cosplay outfits, which were neatly wrapped with ribbons like Christmas presents.
The five children excitedly received their bags, only to be disappointed when they saw the contents.
“It’s kind of plain.”
A girl named Aoi voiced her honest opinion.
The boys received black trousers, white dress shirts, and black capes. The girls got black dresses and pointy black hats.
While these could be considered vampire and witch costumes, they could also be seen as just plain black clothes. It was understandable that the children were disappointed with the lackluster costumes.
Seeing the children’s disappointed faces, Sōma also began to feel anxious even though he wasn’t in charge.
But this was just the beginning.
Chika brought over another cardboard box from near the entrance and overturned it onto the table.
As the colorful and glittering contents spilled out, the children let out exclamations of surprise.
In the middle of the table, a mountain was formed by frilly laces, ribbons, and various shapes of decorations made from felt. There were even resin accessories that had been crafted at the home of a friend who took up resin-making as a hobby.
“There’s so much here!”
Aoi picked up a resin brooch sparkling with glitter and exclaimed excitedly, urging the other children to follow her.
“It’s so sparkly!”
“Look, there’s a big bat!”
“And here’s a frilly ribbon!”
The children rummaged through the decorations, their voices filled with laughter.
Chika cleared her throat to get their attention after surveying the kids.
“Um… as you all can see, I was only able to make plain costumes by myself. I’m sorry.”
She bowed her head apologetically.
“So, I was wondering if you could all lend me your help. With your hands, please complete each of the costumes.”
After hearing Chika’s explanation, the children looked at each other. Then, representing the group, Aoi asked,
“Can we attach anything we want from here?”
“Yes, please feel free to do so. There’s fabric glue available, so you can use that to stick them on. We also have fabric crayons if you want to draw pictures. Once you’re done, please tell me or Sōma-san, and we’ll iron it. That way, the decorations and drawings will stick properly to the costumes.”
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“So, the clothes won’t tear or break easily, and we can use them for a long time!”
“Yes, that’s right. I guarantee their durability.”
Chika’s nod was the signal to start.
The children were all excited as they began searching for their favorite decorations.
Chika let out a relieved sigh as she watches the happily bustling kids.
“I’m glad. It seems like it work out.”
“You were so confident before but were actually worried, huh?”
Chika let out a wry smile when he teased her.
“Just a little. When I was young, my parents’ opinions always seemed to interfere whenever I did something. Choosing clothes was a prime example. ‘Wear this because it suits you,’ ‘Don’t wear that. It’s not ladylike.’ I often heard such things. I know my parents didn’t mean any harm, but it was still frustrating. I just wanted to decide for myself what to wear.”
“So that’s what inspired this idea?”
“That, and the fact that I couldn’t make satisfying costumes for five people on my own. I thought it would be really fun if you could arrange your clothes as much as you wanted without anyone interfering. However, this was just my idea. I was still worried whether the children would feel the same.”
“Even without such a heavy reason, the kids were bound to get super excited if you tell them they can do whatever they want without adults getting in the way.”
The children’s eyes were sparkling. They probably wouldn’t have shone like this during the usual party games like musical chairs or bingo.
“Hey Aoi-chan, do you have a big bat?”
“I do, but I found it first!”
“How about we trade for this ghost?”
“Hmm, I’ll trade for two skeletons.”
Frankly, this was more like an arts and crafts session than a party. But it was clear the children were having fun.
“Sister, the glue spilled out.”
“That’s alright. This glue becomes transparent when heated, so it won’t be noticeable even if it spills a bit.”
Chika reassured the boy who had made a mistake,
“Hey, I want to draw a dragon on my back. Please show me a picture of a dragon on your smartphone.”
“Sure, but a dragon on the back of a witch?”
“My mom used to wear this outfit with a big dragon on it. When I was little, she’d wear it and give me a ride on her super cool and really loud bike!”
“Your mom was a former yankee, huh?”
Sōma helped the girl draw the picture while feeling a bit intimidated by the girl’s parent.
After about an hour of work, the children’s cosplay costumes were complete.
“Riku-kun’s cape is so shiny!”
“It’s really dazzling!”
“Aoi-chan’s… that dragon is so big, it’s kind of scary.”
“Ehehe.”
“I’m not praising it…”
The children, each adorned with their own unique decorations on their cosplay costumes, all looked satisfied.
It was quite fun to see how they had all overdone the decorations, making it look like a Christmas tree.