Free The Fall of Candy Corn by Debbie Viguié Page B

into the wall. She kept her feet under her, though, and kept running. When she reached the finale, she was relieved to discover that she didn’t recognize anyone in the group. She returned to the start, determined not to mess up again.
    Tamara was in the tenth group to come through. With her were several of the girls from youth group and one of the girls from Drama. Candace screamed especially loud, and they screamed back, obviously having practiced to do just that.
    The next hour was a nightmare. Every group that came through was made up of people from church or school or both. Fortunately Candace was able to do everything right.
    The rest of the night passed in a blur. By the time it was over and Candace turned in her costume, she was shaking with fatigue from head to toe.
    â€œYou okay?” Kurt asked, looking concerned.
    She nodded. “I survived,” she said, realizing that Tamara had been right to buy her the Candy Craze T-shirt.
    â€œI heard you did more than that,” he said. “I heard you rocked.”
    â€œI hope so.”
    â€œGet some rest. I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
    â€œOkay,” she said.
    She made it to her car and called Tamara. She wanted someone to talk to while she was driving so she wouldn’t fall asleep.
    â€œWell?” she asked when Tamara picked up.
    â€œAmazing!”
    â€œYeah?”
    â€œSeriously, you were totally awesome!” Tamara shrieked.
    â€œThanks,” Candace said, praying she could drive home in safety.
    â€œEveryone can’t stop talking about it. A bunch of us are still at the church if you want to come hang out.”
    â€œI’d love to, but I can barely keep my eyes open,” Candace admitted.
    Tamara instantly sounded sympathetic. “I believe it. I have no idea how you could keep that up all night.”
    The funny part was that Tamara and all the other players probably had done as much running and screaming as Candace had. At the end of the day, though, she guessed that the big difference between attending Scare and working it was that the excitement of being a player gives you energy for hours, while the ref just gets sweaty and stressed.
    They talked for a couple of more minutes until Candace was nearly home.
    â€œCall me tomorrow,” Tamara said.
    â€œI will,” Candace promised.
    She made it home. She staggered into her room and fell on her bed still in her clothes. She hugged Mr. Huggles, thought about putting on her pajamas, and fell asleep.

    Slowly Candace began to wake up. Her throat felt scratchy, and her eyes were burning. Her body felt sore all over. It took her a minute to realize that she was probably suffering from the aftereffects of Scare. She started coughing and could swear she tasted the fake fog from the night before.
    She rolled over and looked at her clock. It was eleven in the morning. At least she had gotten some sleep. She vaguely remembered falling asleep around four.
    She staggered out of bed and, after a quick trip to the bathroom, changed into jeans and a T-shirt. She headed downstairs and was surprised to find her parents smiling at her from the kitchen table where a variety of food was waiting. She coughed for a moment and finally asked, “What’s all this?”
    â€œWe call it brunch,” her dad said, a twinkle in his eye.
    â€œYou guys should have woken me,” she said and then promptly yawned.
    â€œWe figured you needed your rest. It was a big night last night. How did it go?” her mom asked.
    â€œGood,” Candace said, sliding into her chair. “I’m tired though. I never knew running and screaming could be so much work.”
    Both her parents laughed. “Well, when that’s all you’re doing for hours at a time, I imagine it would be exhausting,” her dad said.
    â€œDid you recognize anyone from youth group?” her mom asked.
    Candace nodded. “I recognized everyone from youth group. I don’t