[She's silent for a moment, leaning forward on her hands a little to watch Ben pry the lid off. He's so careful, as though his hands are likely to break every little thing they touch, and maybe they are. Maybe that's how he manages gentleness so often, through caution.]

[When he looks inside, he seems surprised and then blooms with understanding. It makes her grin, and she peers inside, too, even though she knows what's in there, maybe getting a little too close in his personal space but too excited to register it.]

Gross, right? Sticky. But like I said, the seeds are good. And pie.

[She backs up at the question, frowning and trying to remember.]

I . . . used to make faces in the pumpkins. Scary ones or mean ones. My mom always made them smiling, but I thought that was dumb. You're supposed to be scared on Hallowe'en.

[A small, bittersweet smile.]

Maybe she was right, I don't know. I think I might just . . . make designs this time. Something pretty for the light to show through.