Once upon a HALLOWEEN

It was time for Susan and her ghoul-friends to get into the spirit of things

- Linda Lewis

I'm so glad that you decided to come.' I took hold of Penny's arm and ushered her inside. 'Laura and Judith are in the living room, waiting to carve the jack-o'-lanterns.

Penny looked less than keen when Laura handed her a large carving knife. For a moment or two, I thought she might refuse to take part but, in the end, she agreed to give it a go.

It soon became obvious that she didn’t have the knack. After several slips of the knife, her pumpkin ended up with one eye three times bigger than the other. It also had a jagged mouth that might have been hacked out by a deranged serial killer using a chainsaw.

‘I recognise that crooked smile. It reminds me of your ex,’ joked Laura.

I cringed. Laura is one of my dearest friends, but she’s never been what you’d call tactful. I mean the whole idea of the Halloween party was to help Penny get over Simon, not remind her of him every five minutes.

Luckily, Penny didn’t take it the wrong way and managed a weak smile.

I felt sorry for her. Her boyfriend of more than two years ended their relationship five days before a big birthday. She’d been anxious enough about turning 30 without having to cope with that bombshell, too. I wasn’t the only one who suspected that Simon had timed it on purpose to avoid having to buy her a decent present. He always was a cheapskate.

To tell the truth, I was glad to see the back of him. Whenever I saw them together, Penny always looked tense. It didn’t matter what she wore or how she did her make-up, he was always finding fault. If it wasn’t trying to get her to lose weight, he was on at her to change her hair colour, when she looked lovely just the way she was.

She deserved better than him, so I wasn't unhappy when it ended.